Everyone is talking about sustainability and more and more it’s clear that green washing would be the more appropriate term. Zegna is shifting its operation to be more specific and now talks about traceability. For the linen focused S/S 2024 collection L’Oasi di Lino, designer Alessandro Sartori used the friendliest of green materials to fluid perfection and his company makes the promise that Oasi Lino fibers will be one hundred percent traceable by 2024. Now that’s the kind of claim that matters to consumers as action speaks louder than words and faux marketing language. At Zegna it’s cashmere for winter and linen for summer now. The company brought 192 bales of flax from Normandy onto Piazza San Fedele in the heart of Milan to create friction between nature and the city just the way Sartori’s clothes do where bombers become shirts and the tailored silhouette comes completely deconstructed.

Flax is often considered a preferred fiber with less harmful environmental impact as few, if any, chemical pesticides, and fertilizers are required, and cultivation does not require a lot of irrigation. Apart from the bucolic setting, the show telegraphed a city attitude with its precise garments where sleeves can go only as far as the elbow in beautiful colors like mint green and salmon. Constantly reassessing the codes of the modern suit, Sartori now goes as far as saying that any two items in the same fabric and color like a pair of shorts and a tank top can constitute the modern suit.

Favorite looks?

Linen not only has a tactile feel, but it also has a recognizable look as the fabric surface looks uneven. There was a long-haired blonde model in a soft green bomber looking like a shirt and wide pants with a knit foulard around the neck which brought together Sartori’s penchant for tailoring and said fabric innovation. It looked new and fresh, like a farmer meets city slicker. All his plunging V-shaped necklines, razed off lapels and short sleeves created a languid motion.

Power play?