In Brioni’s autumn/winter 2023 collection – presented at Men’s Fashion Week in Milan – design director Norbert Stumpfl saw an opportunity to affirm what the Italian brand stands for. Namely elegance, sophistication and exceptional tailoring.

Hosted in the basement of Palazzo Citterio, a prominent 18^th-century building in Milan’s Brera district, the clothes (like their surroundings) struck the balance between elevation and effortlessness that has long been the brand’s calling card.

Not by chance, the grandeur of the loggia was contrasted by a Brutalist-inspired underground addition to the palazzo: an unfinished concrete space turned – for this occasion – into a square, celebrating the distinctively Italian way of socialising.

Stumpfl explored ideas of travel and movement in this collection, which manifested as soft tailoring, timelessness and exquisite craftsmanship. Ease and fluidity was displayed in relaxed coats, field jackets and anoraks made from weightless cashmere and vicuña, layered over fine knitwear and overshirts. Elsewhere, fuller trousers and lengthy suit jackets in precious materials such as silk, velvet and recycled crocodile skin assured a sense of luxurious comfort. The collection is inspired by colours used throughout the artist Caravaggio’s work, with a heavy dose of black, cream and naturals as well as an injection of turquoise and tobacco.

And the Austrian designer didn’t overlook the incredible skills of the local artisans who collaborate with the brand, like the family-run weaving workshop based in a small town in the Liguria region. ‘From the windows of their workroom you can see the Italian Riviera coastline, it felt so unique,’ Stumpfl said.