Style reporter Amy Verner is covering the major shows at Paris Couture Fashion Week this week. Follow her on Twitter @amyverner.
The designer
Last couture season, Giorgio Armani travelled out of this world, creating gowns with space-age reflective surfaces and intergalactic headgear. For his fall 2011 show, he has returned his focus to planet earth, specifically to Japan and the classic and formally robed women in Stanley B. Burns and Elizabeth A. Burns' coffee table tome, Geisha: A Photographic History.
The show
To reach the runway, guests descended into the bowels of the Théâtre National de Chaillot down a red-carpeted staircase bathed in red light. It was dark and dramatic; one magazine editor could be heard asking for a "sturdy arm" to avoid toppling over in her heels. The largest show so far, it also drew megawatt celebrities Katie Holmes and Cate Blanchett.
The statement
Armani's take on the kimono was notable for what it lacked: fullness. Instead, he streamlined the silhouettes, making floor-length gowns more tubular, less padded. He had a go at origami, creating a pleating effect at the back of at least one coat that billowed and folded in on itself with stunning fluidity. As a contrast to all the pretty floral-print and Mikado silks, bodices were often squared off and rigid, producing a sculptural stiffness that was also echoed in the obi-style belts. Once again, Armani enlisted Philip Treacy to design the accompanying hats; characteristically fantastical, they would be ideal for a party where the dress code calls for "Geisha derby chic."
The effect
These were dresses that made as strong an exit as an entrance. Armani showed respect for the tradition of the ceremonial garb while interpreting it with technical and artistic precision.
The takeaway
There is a certain uneasiness that comes with admiring such an extravagant "tribute" to Japanese culture in light of the recent earthquake. Then again, what Armani has done here is direct our focus on the beauty rather than the despair. At least it keeps Japan top of mind - and in a far more reverential way than sushi dinner.
Amy Verner