Simply Abu Dhabi XXX

2 1 1 S I M P LY A B U DH A B I SANTONI EDITED BY MARCO ZANINI M arco Zanini had worked as creative director for Schiaparelli. Santoni was previously a Milanese shoe brand. They met, and together for the second time, Zanini and Santoni collaborated on evolving and creating a new approach to fashion. Each season, Marco creates exclusive and refined pieces for Santoni, adding a contemporary and complementary look to its classical brand image, both for men and women. “We offer a few things at the high-end level” declared Santoni’s Chief Executive Officer, Giuseppe Santoni. That’s the duo’s aim: offering to the market a capsule collection of wearable items that perfectly suit the minimalistic elegance of their customer. Outwear was a huge part of the collection: a mackintosh coat, a blazer, a practical K-way, a few dresses, aviator jackets, trenches, knits and shirts. The shapes and silhouettes are fluid, easy and comfortable while the fabrics used have been designed by Zanini, who has explored the Lyonnaise manufacturer’s archives to create exclusive prints and textures made with the highest level of craftsmanship. In the collection fascinating fabrics like cady, techno satin, cotton, linen, denim and poplin are used. Colour was also a huge theme in this collection and it has an artistic vibe to it, because the collection in itself has a particular story. In fact, for this collection, Zanini and Santoni took inspiration from a geologist who in 1862 started collecting marble and stone of ancient Rome, amassing a sizeable collection over decades. This stone collection traversed many owners until Milanese architect Piero Portaluppi secured them and kept them in his studio. From this, the collection developed into a tribute to geology, marble from different eras and to Portaluppi himself who, as Zanini said “was the epitome of Milanese-cultivated good taste”. Coloured pumps and flats made of intrecciato (woven leather) or moccasins were also a huge part of the collection.