The Bite Magazine - Autumn/Winter 2021 - Issue 30

bitecatwalk GILBERTO CALZOLARI S ignore Calzolari is a man, a designer and fashion vision- ary whose mission of creating and producing high-end, luxury wear in a completely planet-friendly and sustain- able way is one that I, one hundred percent support! “Gilberto Calzolari is a high-end prêt-à-porter brand made in Italy with a ‘green’ heart that believes that elegance and beauty must go hand-in-hand with respect for our planet.” It’s no secret that Earth is in trouble in more ways than one and that our delicate and fragile climate is at stake. Humanity’s greed and constant demand for ‘fast fashion’ and overproduction are one of the leading causes of pollution to date. Calzolari, who won the coveted Franca Sozzani Green Carpet Award in 2015, is one of the many designers trying to fight this dirty consumption and turn things around. We can have beautiful, high-quality clothes without it costing Mother Nature an arm and a leg. This heartfelt and honourable goal has always been at the forefront of Calzolari’s aesthetic and brand. His fashion line- age began at birth, as he is the son of a fabrics merchant and store manager for high-end boutiques in Milan. He took his intimate exposure to fashion and further educated himself by earning a degree from the Academy of Fine Arts of Brera. After graduating, he began working for some of the respected luxury brands in Italy. His engrossing background has equipped him with the impressive talent of designing pieces that move and flow, all the while maintaining a very elegant structure and sil- houette that cleverly combines past styles with modern twists. This beautiful collaboration can be seen in his latest AW21 collection ‘At This Stage’ which was filmed in an empty audi- torium with the models walking through the audience seating of a small platform stage theatre room. They walk amongst the empty seats decked out in a very vivid autumnal colour palette of rusty reds, mustard yellows, creamy beiges and hints of mut- ed navy blue in solids, a puzzle-like pattern and then a fun use of a colour swatch board as a print. The line-up features simple design profiles with everything from slightly flared A-line skirts, boxy cropped trousers, and asymmetrical dresses and ever so slightly exaggerated long and short belted trench coats. Conclusively, it was a lighthearted take on the only slightly cooler-temperature dressing we’re ex- periencing this fall. Perhaps he’s not so subtly nodding at the effects of Global Warming? Could be. https://www.gilbertocalzolari.com