The famous pier in Malibu, California, was the runway for Zegna's spring/summer 2027 collection unveiling.
Driving along the fire-ravaged coastline to get there felt, at first, incongruous. Yet, as the elegant, languid collection unspooled at sunset, the reasoning became more obvious.
Called La Villeggiatura, which translates to "stay in a villa", this collection was built around – and for – the uniquely Italian concept of taking an extended, leisurely summer holiday in a single place. Differing from a standard break, instead, this is about moving the entire family to a villa or coastal resort for the summer, to slow down and recharge.
It is this slower rhythm that Zegna artistic director Alessandro Sartori tapped into, crafting a collection so light that it seemed more like cruise or resort than ready-to-wear.
Spread across 60 looks, it felt deconstructed and less formal, stripped of entire categories that no longer served. For a house built around impeccable tailoring, the lack of sharp urban suiting, for example, was noticeable, yet there was method in Sartori's thinking. He was proposing something so laid back it tapped into an entirely new attitude.
Inspired by a 1980s Zegna sports collection found in the archive, this reimagining was relaxed, yet resolutely stylish.
Stripes appeared as the summer's main pattern, as asymmetric white lines on algae green and horizontally across intarsia knitted jumpers. Delicate lines of white, black and terracotta patterned a raw, organic silk made into a bomber jacket and matching trousers, and woven on 1960s looms, while jaunty deck chair stripes covered suede tote bags and loose scarves.
A black button-front bomber jacket that appeared to have vertical stripes turned out to be a Zegna innovation, constructed as an open weave of knitted suede on the outside and nubuck on the inside.
Boxy shirts, meanwhile, came in silk, nappa, croc, nubuck and a linen brushed to resemble peach fuzz – and all engineered with collars that can be swapped out. Blazers were made to be worn cinched or roomy thanks to hidden, adjustable belts, as even the belted Safari jacket – key to nailing this nonchalant mood – came with an extra version of an overshirt with short sleeves.
Elsewhere, fabrics suggested poolside living, with seersucker and "sponge" – a Zegna invention that melds cotton and mulberry silk to suggest boucle towelling – used to craft pullovers, shorts and trousers.
Leather was sliced into glossy shorts and shirts soft enough not to require lining, and every jacket was cut with a generous back vent for ease of movement.
The palette too spoke of long days and endless sunshine via tidal blues and algae greens, stone, sand, apricot and cinnamon; with pops of dandelion yellows and washed black. One zesty yellow was lifted straight from an archival photo of founder Ermenegildo Zegna wearing a suit of the exact hue.
In the show notes, Sartori spoke of presenting "a Zegna take on summer, our vision of leisure dressing as something that’s drenched in a cultivated attitude, in a discerning gaze that's profoundly Italian".
Given the proximity to Hollywood, naturally, there were plenty of actors in attendance, including Egyptian-American Rami Malek, Mahershala Ali, Stellan Skarsgard, Paul Dano, and Gael Garcia Bernal. Composer Ludwig Goransson was present, as was filmmaker Roman Coppola, plus NBA player Scottie Pippen.
A monied area, many of the Malibu homes destroyed in the 2025 wildfires belong to A-list celebrities, business tycoons and tech moguls drawn to the coastal region for its rugged beauty, wild nature and slower pace. This collection, founded around halcyonic life, spoke of a similar thinking – where time stands still and the simple pleasures of good food, good company and the quiet joy of wearing beautifully made clothes take precedence.
In a world moving ever faster, Zegna perhaps looks to offer an alternative. Instead of speed, it signals pause and recalibration. Sartori's skill as a designer stems from his genuine belief that clothes hold the power to "define attitudes and suggest ways of being and behaving". Told through exquisite materials such as raw silk, denim drill, linen, gaberdine, French velvet and an ingenious silk, wool and paper canvas, he is offering a tactile journey of reconnection, one perfectly belted jacket at a time.
