Valentino challenges masculine notions, opening Milan Fashion Week menswear previews

The Milan menswear calendar was missing some mainstays, but the return of Valentino’s menswear for this season kicked off the week with high energy. British singer Labrinth provided a live soundtrack from center stage, pumping music into the colonnaded courtyard of Milan’s state university.

Students, taking a break from their regular class schedule, watched from beneath the colonnade, while the fashion crowd tented show notes on their head to protect from the beating sun — many regretting dressing in black.

The show was a homecoming of sorts for the French-owned Italian brand: Fashion house founder Valentino Garavani staged his first menswear runway show in Italy’s fashion capital in 1985, and regularly showed menswear in Milan until his retirement in 2008.

Some highlights from Friday’s show of mostly menswear previews for next spring and summer:

VALENTINO LIFTS LOOKS WITH FLORAL DETAILING

Valentino creative director Pierpaolo Piccioli’s collection for next summer is rooted in tailoring with some feminine flair, seen in softening colors and flowing shapes. But it was the floral detailing that lifted the collection.

The suit is the bedrock look, starting with monochromes in white: jacket, shirt, tie and a thigh-revealing Bermuda short. Black footwear, socks and accessories ensured the urban edge.

The shorts were sometimes transformed into a skirt. And tailored bottoms — short, pant or skirt — could be paired with a shirt, boxy top or a silken V-neck with contrasting ties that billowed in the welcome breeze.

Floral notes elevated the looks, like forever boutonnieres giving life to garments in sequins, appliques, embroidery and graphic prints — never the same. From white and then black, the color palette exploded into fuchsia and pink, red and royal blue, with notes of gray, always in clean, studied monochromes.

The fashion house announced a donation to the university for scholarships for the next academic year. It also said it is working with a company to recycle, reuse or resell runway materials, and it is planting trees in Milan’s Public Gardens, close to Valentino’s Milan offices.