At Marni, An Autobiography of Style

MILAN, Italy — Autobiography can be a good way to fix a fashion problem. Francesco Risso, the relatively new creative director at Marni, basically put himself on the catwalk today and the result was a lot more convincing than his previous women's outing. It was more focused, more nuanced and a plausible evolution of the eccentric DNA of the brand, although still full of persistent Prada notes.

The undone hems, shrunken knits and artfully mismatched combinations of tailored pieces that looked like they were culled from the street corner or an Oxfam bag — a luxurious one, that is — are exactly the kind of gear that the designer is usually seen in. The approach worked to Risso's advantage: there was an air of poetic, almost narcoleptic abandon to the whole, like dressing in a state of complete absent-mindedness.

The catchphrase for the collection was "lost and found." At times, the naivetè felt a bit forced — the little beach hats sitting on the shoulders, the neckties used to close bags — which showed the limits of Risso's strategy. When he lets go of his own eccentricity, he will finally find his signature. He certainly has the talent to do so.