An Elegance Between Glamour and Transformation
Inspired by the 1920s, The Velvet Night is an intense, sophisticated elegance built from nocturnal atmosphere, seduction, and precious detail.
Inspired by the 1920s and by an imaginary world suspended between literature and vintage cinema, The Velvet Night speaks of an intense and sophisticated elegance, one made of nocturnal atmosphere, seduction, and precious detail. It is a collection conceived for the hours after dark, when light softens, gesture slows, and dress becomes a form of storytelling.
Antonio Riva Milano looks to the 1920s as a decade of transformation, freedom, and spectacle, a moment in which fashion became the expression of a new way of living and of interpreting femininity. That spirit of reinvention runs through the entire collection.
With The Velvet Night, the Maison deepens its research into the relationship between form, material, and movement, carrying it towards a more narrative universe. The long, fluid silhouettes follow the body with ease, while fringing, a strongly evocative element of the 1920s aesthetic, introduces dynamism, rhythm, and lightness, catching the light with every step. The palette moves between burgundy, black, powder pink, and gold, building a warm, sophisticated balance of color poised between shadow and light.
Material becomes central to the narrative. Dense, enveloping velvets, mikado, and embroidered fabrics define a collection in which structure and softness coexist. The layering creates depth and stratification, evoking a dialogue between eras, memories, and sensations so that each look feels drawn from a remembered scene rather than simply designed.
The Velvet Night also looks to the 1920s as a moment of profound social and feminine transformation, a time when women claimed new spaces of freedom, visibility, and autonomy. Moda accompanied that change through ever freer silhouettes, gestures, and aesthetic codes: garments became an expression of identity, desire, and change. Antonio Riva Milano restores that seductive, vital spirit today, weaving the character of tradition with a contemporary sensibility.
The Velvet Night collection will be presented across two appointments during Milan Fashion Week:
- Monday, 21 September, from 10.00 to 12.00: the Creative Director will present the collection to the press in person.
- Saturday, 26 September, from 18.00 to 21.00: the Antonio Riva Milano atelier at Corso Venezia 44 will host a cocktail with a DJ set by Catherine Poulain, by invitation.
