
There is only one designer out there who can stitch together a collection inspired by a 15th century image of the baby Jesus, wardrobes from “Sex and the City,” circa 2001, and the eccentric, tattooed beach-dwellers of Los Angeles.
That designer is Fausto Puglisi, whose joyous, sexy and completely over-the-top collection worked despite those disparate inspirations, and under the gaze of the Virgin Mary, by Renaissance master Antonello da Messina, who featured big on his moodboard.
“I wanted to mix opposites, and work with all the codes of Cavalli,” said the exuberant Puglisi, who used the collection to express love for his native Sicily, for the sunny — and dark — sides of L.A., and for the streets of New York City. Puglisi said he recently came across images of the cast from “Sex and the City,” wearing Cavalli print tops with jeans — and was instantly inspired.
“That was the New Yorker uniform of the late 1990s and early 2000s, and so I wanted to play with a lot of jeans, separates, and mix together the essentials. And I played a lot with embroidery and embellishment. Everything is extremely sexy and happy and beautiful. I believe we need some sexiness and happiness right now,” he added.
Cardi B, who was sitting front-row swathed in a fur-trimmed, printed silk robe, round sunglasses and leopard print stilettos, was dressed for the occasion. Having arrived with great fanfare and a posse of photographers, the rapper was able to watch a show that rivalled one of her own.
Models sashayed down the catwalk in denim micro minis, shorts and skinny flared jeans embellished with feathers, fur, crystals, sparkly fringe and fabric sunflowers — sometimes all at once. The minis and shorts in particular were tiny as a doll’s clothes and tailor-made for the GLP-1 generation. Puglisi paired them with sheer, flowy tops or long silk robes printed with flowers, zebra stripes and leopard spots.
Dresses and flowing robes, some of them printed, others with flocked patterns sailed down the runway alongside a lineup of gowns with long frayed strips recalled that L.A. lady Stevie Nicks in the 1970s.
Little slip dresses with ruffle tiers took their color cues from da Messina’s painting, while other looks had Pop art flair, including a midi-skirt with electric green fringe, a teeny miniskirt with dark red sparkles. Laid-back sarong skirts twinkled with little bits of gold and shells while denim hems sprouted sunflowers. That’s the definition of happiness, Cavalli style.







