In the last three weeks, we’ve been getting inside access to what’s going on behind the scenes of the men’s fashion shows in London and the casting process in Paris. Our contact on the inside is the young Australian model James Gatenby and his latest entry below is from Milan, the fashion capital of Italy. Here is his report below about how the models spend their days behind all the lights, cameras and celebrity-studded front row shows …
“Applause fills the air and champagne fills our glasses …”
In James’ own words …
Milan, some models hate it and some love it but in any case it’s the next stop on our fashion journey this season. Castings have already been going on three days while the London boys have been doing shows. Some of these boys will have to see up to 20 or more clients on their first day, all in the sweltering heat. But at least we are in the land of gelato.
I’m whisked off to a fitting for Z Zegna with some other boys as soon as we leave the plane. They are showing in Florence this season, and before long I’m on a model bus heading through the gorgeous countryside of Italy. The show is a flurry of intense activity in the final hours, everything is finished just in time for our 20 seconds of fame on the runway. Applause fills the air and champagne fills our glasses afterwards, sighs of relief all around.
Milan shows are spread out over 5 days, so it’s not unusual to have a free day to explore the city. Gorgeous views are offered at many bars around the central cathedral and some of the best Italian food is around if you know where to look. If you want to be adventurous lake Como to the north offer spectacular scenery that the likes of George Clooney visit frequently through out the year.
Parties are rocking again, and some boys move fluently from shows to fittings to parties to shows and back again. You can sleep when fashion week is over! By the end everyone is a zombie, but we are not done yet, Paris is our final destination and there are airport strikes on the rise …
Stay tuned for the next entry from James, and be sure to follow him on twitter: @JimmyGmodel
See the first posts from James Gatenby at the Paris casting here and the London menswear collections here …
