Daily Front Row

2009 March 4

A Costa Catch-Up

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Michael Roberts and Francisco Costa
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(MILAN) Even during Milan's Fashion Week, Calvin Klein continues to make news. Francisco Costa and Kevin Carrigan were on hand at the brand's Italian HQ on Sunday to show the fall offerings of Calvin Klein Collection for women, CK Calvin Klein and Calvin Klein Jeans. The Daily caught up with Costa at the beginning of his presentation as retailers and editors swarmed around the samples.

"The presentation is a much more intimate way of doing it," he said, gesturing to his designs hanging artfully in the background. "It's nice for people to get closer to what I do in terms of fabric and technique. It's always evolving--this is an evolution of Spring, and maybe a little more closer to reality in a sense, as Spring was very concept and this is very focused on wearability."

As for Costa's extracurricular activities in Milan? "I am here to work," he said. "This office is great, because it's very spacious--I don't feel pressure, so I can really work. I do a lot of fabric research, but very honestly, eating is the best thing about this trip. You can't have a bad meal in Milan. I love Da Ilia. I lived here a long time ago, so it's my kitchen. It feels like an extension of my home! I go to Bice, too, and other new places."

Given that Costa was one of the American designers invited to the Vanity Fair Oscar party, The Daily asked for a recap. "It was so incredible. That party just knocks you out, because you turn around, and you see...everyone," he said. "Sometimes, you feel like you've seen it all, and you get there and it's like...wow, no, no at all. It's so cool because everybody is in such a relaxed mode, because the environment is very unassuming. We all talk to everybody--it's not a showy thing, you're not under pressure of going to an event. It feels like everyone is there just to hang out and talk to everyone."

Costa's overall Academy Awards experience was positive. "I was totally happy about Slumdog," he said. "I really liked the presentation [of the Oscars], although a lot of people criticized it. It kind of brought back a bit of Broadway. It was funny, a little corny--all those things that entertain!"
ASHLEY BAKER