Within the silent vaults of the Pinacoteca di Brera, fashion has said its farewell. Giorgio Armani's Spring/Summer 2026 show—the last stylistic chapter personally conceived by the designer, who passed away this year—has transformed into an intimate and collective celebration of his legacy.
What should have been a celebration for the fashion house's fiftieth anniversary instead became a testament of affection and gratitude. Special guests, from Cate Blanchett to Spike Lee, from Marisa Berenson to Paola Cortellesi, shared with the audience fragments of memories and words that offered a vivid glimpse of the man behind the legend.
A visual journey between Pantelleria and Milan
The collection, entitled Pantelleria, Milan, embodies the dialogue between two poles dear to the couturier: the material fluidity of the island and the urban geometry of Milan. The fabrics, in a dance of lightness, glide gracefully across the skin; the hues range from neutral greiges and marine shades to touches of oriental purple, intertwining harmonious contrasts.
In the visual narrative, the runway swung between sartorial austerity and soft poetry: rigorous suits alternated with deconstructed dresses, culminating in a memorable dress, embellished with a print of Armani's face. That dress—a symbolic fulcrum—was perceived as the most sensitive and poignant farewell: a final look from the artist toward his world.
Faces and voices of farewell
The evening was enhanced not only by the clothes, but also by the presence of those who accompanied Giorgio throughout his career: muses, actresses, and friends took the stage with deep involvement. Katherine Blanchett remembered him as "authentic and sincere"; Lauren Hutton evoked his role as an architect of change in fashion; Glenn Close, in a white tuxedo, spoke of their centuries-long friendship; Marisa Berenson called him "eternal."
Ludovico Einaudi's live music wove the evening's emotional framework, offering a sober and incisive background, capable of accentuating the power of the image and the memory.
A legacy that endures
The show embodied Giorgio Armani's desire to once again communicate his aesthetic code: a full yet light elegance, a balance between rigor and fluidity, a silent theater of fabrics and shapes that belongs to the past but looks to the future.
It wasn't just a final tribute, but rather a final style statement: a gesture that seals an era and, at the same time, invites future fashion designers to carry forward a vision made of moderation, sensitivity, and memory.