The modern fairy tale of A.C.9 for spring-summer 2022

A.C.9 debuts at Milan Fashion Week with Alice in Modernland, a modern fairy tale with an underground and melancholic atmosphere. For the spring-summer 2022 collection, which also includes the AC9 x N°21 capsule collection, Alfredo Cortese tells the story of his Alice, a "fearless, courageous, stubborn, innocent woman, but with a dark side". Like Carroll's heroine, she goes on a journey to discover the world and herself which develops in three acts. 

The first one shows its purity, an innocence that is reflected in the total white pieces, mixing different fabrics such as recycled Japanese vintage satin for lingerie and petticoats or lace, but also in the nude knitwear, thin, light as chiffon, made three-dimensional thanks to coulisse effects. As Alice discovers rebellion, the clothes become more textural: it's the moment of denim and coated cotton with a mirrored effect, of skirts with maxi ruffles, of pants featuring two lives of different heights overlapping one another, of deconstructed and asymmetrical items. In the last part, Alice has grown up, she is a woman with a child's heart who wears black, who plays with proportions and with her more sensual side. In her new wardrobe appear leather jackets covered with zippers, micro tops to be worn with knitted leggings, oversized outerwear, geometric one-shoulder dresses and knitwear made more underground by straps made of sharp studs. Even the accessories seem to revisit the 90s underground with a fairy-tale twist, such as caps with feather crests, earrings embellished with crystal pendants and maxi bows, leather or faux fur slippers or boots with an exaggerated platform. 

On the occasion of the presentation of the new SS22, Alfredo Cortese told nss G-Club in a mini interview all the details and curiosities about the collection.

Hi Alfredo, tell us something about yourself. How did your journey in the fashion world begin and how did the project A.C.9 come to life?

Before embarking on the A.C.9 adventure I was many other things, a chemist, a photographer, a PR. But I've always had a great desire to express myself. For this reason A.C.9 was born, to give vent to this deep desire to express my creativity. I like to think that my various souls, the more rational scientific one, the artistic one linked to photography and that of the world of communication, have brought me to where I am now and give me inspiration every day.

Your SS22 collection is titled "Alice in Modernland". What is the inspiration behind the collection and what is your idea of modern / contemporary fashion?

The inspiration for this collection is, as the title itself suggests, Alice in Wonderland. A character of literature to which I am very fond of as she embodies what I imagine to be the A.C.9 woman: courageous, obstinate and innocent, but at the same time with a dark side that comes out at times and always surprises. My woman, like Alice, always follows her instinct and launches herself towards new challenges with determination. For me, fashion today is a personal concept, it is freedom to express oneself. The dresses of A.C.9 want to be just that: creations that give the wearer the possibility to convey everything she wants in a pure and at the same time sophisticated way.

 

 

One of the first things you notice in the collection are the fabrics and colors. How important is the choice and use of materials for you?

For me, research is vital. The fluidity of a fabric or the way it reflects light are essential to best express the concept behind every look. I use a few, but always in opposition to each other.

 

The collection presented in Milan also includes the A.C. 9 x N ° 21 capsule. What does this collaboration mean for you?

It crowns the mentorship period of this year. Telling and reworking the codes of N°21 in an A.C.9 key was a super interesting challenge. I was entrusted with nude knitwear, a material and color dear to Alessandro Dell’Acqua in shapes and volumes full of eroticism and desirability.

The collection combines hyper feminine details like feathers and crystals with a dark and bold mood. Who are the women who inspire A.C.9 and how do these two elements coexist in them?