Prada, Max Mara back to pre-pandemic splendor in Milan

MILAN (AP) — Pre-pandemic fashion delirium is back.

After several calm COVID-induced seasons, Milan Fashion Week is back to its pre-pandemic splendor: with crowded seating, gridlocked streets and sidewalks packed with fashion fans wanting a glimpse of stars and influencers.

After a lot of pandemic talk of how the fashion system needed to change -- that is, slow down -- few have been able to resist returning to the world as they knew it. This week’s runway shows will close with the return of another Milan tradition: the Green Carpet Awards to recognize advances in sustainability.

Here are some highlights from Thursday's shows on the second day of Milan Fashion Week, which is mostly womenswear previews for next spring and summer.

PRADA EXPLORES CRUDE SILK

The latest collection by Miuccia Prada and Raf Simons explores the space between minimalism and decorations, with clean silhouettes and transparent materials.

The collection starts with form-fitting, slightly cropped bodysuits crafted from poplin shirting, in industrial colors like gray and ivory. They are worn under boxy jackets and longer opera coats, then finally, a loose-fitting dress in crude silk and pretty lace detailing, suggestive of a night dress.

‘The clothes are about simplicity, with no unnecessary complication,’’ Prada said in show notes. ‘’ Politically, theoretically, aesthetically, we are drawn to these notions again and again. The idea of directness.’’

The silhouette was simple. Dresses wrap around the body, as casually as a towel after a shower. Transparent, tissue-y overcoats gave a sense of lightness. Naive applique flowers decorate handbags and jackets, at times holding in place a trailing tail of fabric.

Even with the feminine touches, androgyny underlined the collection, in particularly in the...