The sweet smell of lilies lingered in the air of the Prada A/W 2023 show space in February last year, their heady aroma provided by enormous floral chandeliers that hung over the otherwise industrial Deposito space at Fondazione Prada in Milan (see our highlights of Milan Fashion Week A/W 2023). Revealed in parts as the ceiling rose – some delicately dropping petals on the gathered crowd – they provided an apt backdrop for a show Miuccia Prada described as ‘finding beauty everywhere, beauty of different kinds’.
Alongside co-creative director Raf Simons, Miuccia Prada used the nurse’s uniform as a starting point, its usually clean white lines here decorated with delicate floral appliqué. ‘These typical uniform garments, connected to the everyday world, are usually seen as minor, unconsidered,’ explained Simons. ‘So for this collection, we liked the idea of considering them, celebrating them.’
Wallpaper* Design Awards 2024, best structural sensation: floral Prada pumps
Another pair of the structural pumps, as shown in Prada’s A/W 2023 runway show
(Image credit: Courtesy of Prada)
Juxtaposing the quotidien with elements synonymous with celebration and matrimony – flowers, doilies, satin – the duo continued an exploration of what beauty means today. Most extraordinary of all, though, were the shoes: simple knife-point Prada pumps adorned with origami-like motifs of flowers and wings, appearing as delicate as paper, but actually crafted from leather, as if to preserve a memory. As editors trooped backstage post-show, crouching down to get a better look, they were enough to elucidate gasps of joy.
A version of this article appears in the February 2024 issue of Wallpaper* – dedicated to the Wallpaper* Design Awards 2024 – available in print, on the Wallpaper* app on Apple iOS, and to subscribers of Apple News +. Subscribe to Wallpaper* today
Brushed leather Prada pumps with floral appliqués (£950) are available from harrods.com.
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