Today, Stefano Pilati presented his first womenswear collection since he was dismissed from Yves Saint Laurent (as it was then called) in Feburary 2012. His new job as the creative director at Ermenegildo Zegna appears to have afforded him the freedom and security that he lacked before, and his first menswear show was met with high praise. Now he is in the process of revamping Zegna’s semi-dormant Agnona line, which traditionally features high-end women’s read-to-wear but over the past few years has mostly consisted of items like blankets and house slippers.
For his first Agnona range, titled Collezione Zero, Pilati created a static presentation, his clothes exhibited on mannequins, that will be open to the public in Milan until Monday. It’s an unusual way to debut a branding overhaul, but Pilati seems eager to avoid fuss. He didn’t attend its opening, and he has declined to speak to the press about his new work. Perhaps he simply wants to act like the customer he’s courting — someone who’s quiet, unobtrusive, and disinterested in trends.
The clothes themselves speak to this kind of understated timelessness: In keeping with the collection’s title, they’re not pegged to a specific season. The line features both heavy wool coats and light summery dresses. The thick sweaters and belted jackets are stately, sturdy-looking, and built to last — as they should, considering most of them cost well into the four digits. These are not clothes for fashion plates but rather for women who hope to wear them for years and then pass them along to their daughters and granddaughters.
The future of the Agnona collection still remains unclear — it seems Pilati will add to it whenever he chooses rather than follow any sort of prescribed fashion schedule, but we can’t be sure. Click through our slideshow to see his designs.