During her show in the fall of 2011, Mary Katrantzou, as she put it, “pushed the print to its limits.” If it’s not her most iconic collection, this one is up there, a tour de force from a designer still in her twenties, in which Fabergé eggs, Ming vases and other objéts became wearable works of art. Having settled into her new role as creative director of accessories at Bulgari – she was appointed in April last year – Katrantzou is now returning to previous collections from her eponymous brand and revisiting them with more seasoned eyes.
“To be able to look back at something and refine it is at the forefront of what Bulgari has done: keep reinventing the symbols,” she said on a Zoom call. “We are conditioned as designers to look back and feel ‘that’s done’ and move on to the future; I’m just starting to feel like I have my own library.”
The decade and a half between then and now has not only made Katrantzou a more skilled designer, it has also spawned a new generation of women curious about her clothes. What’s different about her work today is its portability. The stiff, couture-like shapes of that fall 2011 collection made a major statement on the runway, but were probably harder to achieve in real life. Here, in her new resort collection, the lampshade skirts were replaced by sleeker and smoother lines and more forgiving fabrics; While some are still grand, the price per wear calculations are more favorable. (These materials have also allowed her to expand her size range, which is a sign of progress that other designers should focus on.)
As for the prints, Katrantzou claims they are even better than the first time. “When I look back at some of the prints I’ve made, I think, wow, the craftsmanship was really quite rushed, because it was always intended to be released for a show. And there was so much – so many ideas that I always wanted to get out – that sometimes the idea took precedence over the level of sophistication I could achieve at the time. A ruby red velvet cocktail dress with a crystal trompe l’oeil chain adorning the bodice was also quite striking.