Labels make outerwear statement at Pitti Uomo

(ANSA) - Rome, January 13 - At the 89th edition Pitti Uomo trade fair running through Friday in Florence, fall 2016 men's wear collections have one tangible star - the coat.
    Outerwear at Pitti has literally slimmed down to the essential with retro silhouettes as well as austere military-style shapes.
    The coat was the theme of an event at the Odeon theater on the opening night of the men's wear fair Tuesday to present the collection Archivio by Paltò, the old-style Italian definition of coat used by a local label which looks to Hollywood movie icons for inspiration, from Marlon Brando to Marcello Mastroianni.
    The brand was created in 2013 by young entrepreneur Luca Paganelli, who has previously worked at Alexander McQueen and Tom Ford.
    The Archivio collection pays homage to the fabrics such as baby alpaca from the Ferla wool mill or Loro Piana camel hair.
    Silhouettes echo the 1950s and 1960s with tweeds and mélange checks.
    Coats have a double label to mark the weaving factory and the Archivio premium line.
    Label Zerosettanta Studio also looked back at its archives, drawing inspiration from Italy in the 1960s with its Urban '60 collection mixing a formal aesthetic with an echo of the counterculture of baby boomers.
    Offerings include glen plaids in eco-suede, funky checks as well as coats with a detachable padded interior.
    The brand does not use chemicals on its products and pledges to employ only clean electricity to produce fashion with zero impact on the environment.
    A select number of pieces in the collection are also made from recycled fabrics.
    Leading Italian tailor Lardini went military with silhouettes evoking US air force uniforms in blue and green.
    Blazers were also inspired by British and Russian military uniforms.
    Mantua's tailor Luigi Bianchi also debuted with a collection focusing mainly on outerwear, in tweeds or camel hair with the light, essential silhouette of a duster coat.
    On the footwear front, the fall-winter 2016 must-haves according to many of the 1,205 labels debuting collections at the leading international trade fair include sneakers, slip-ons and boots - either trekking, or with a 1980s rock vibe.
    Footwear brand Testoni debuted slim Chelsea boots in nappa leather while Pollini sought inspiration from the 1980s with exotic skins and metallic applications.
    Tuscan brand Barbanera, created in 2011, focused on bicolor Chelsea boots and lace-ups, while Bruno Bordese gave footwear a 1950s mountaineering vibe with fur lining.