ONE SET, MANY EXPERIENCES. PRADA USES FLOWERS TO REACTIVATE A PAST RUNWAY
Photo Courtesy of Prada
27 FEB 2023 FOR frame
Location
L.go Isarco, 2, 20139 Milano MI, Italy
Design, Architecture
Brand
AMO reinvented Prada's AW23 menswear runway space for its womenswear presentation with 30,000 lily flowers.
Key features
One month ago, Prada’s AW23 menswear show saw the Fondazione Prada Deposito in Milan become an underground parking lot with set design by AMO. The design firm iterated upon this runway for Prada’s recent womenswear show. Show-goers entered the same minimalistic, dark scene as in January, characterized by a 2.7-m-high ceiling and sculptural grey sitting blocks. The only new additions were orange metal columns, reflecting Deposito's existing orange metal structure.
There was another subtle dimension, though: a floral scent. As the show began, the roof rose, revealing that the brutalistic columns were made of flowers – Prada had added 30,000 real lilies to the room, calling to mind Scandinavian midsummer celebration poles and wedding decorations. The flowers were given away to Fondazione Prada visitors a day later.
FRAME's take
Prada frequently recycles its set design from AW menswear shows in January to AW womenswear a month later. Commonly, changes are purely functional in nature and designed to support the collection's meaning. This time was extraordinary: with the simple update of adding flowers, AMO and Prada reimagined what the set’s architecture could be. The aromatic aspect brought a physical dimension difficult to depict on engineering drawings – one must have faith in the design process.
Miuccia Prada stated after the show that beauty is determined by action rather than aesthetics. Wedding dresses transformed into everyday wear in the AW23 womenswear presentation, while the set’s matrimonial flowers became decorations for a post-show rave party. These proportions and perspective shifts were demonstrated visibly in the room.