Animuomini: Etro's surreal vision for the modern man

There is a moment, in collections that really work, when you realize that they are not just talking about clothes. Etro, with its Fall/Winter 2026-27 men's collection, enters precisely there: in that hybrid zone between fashion, imagination, and identity. The title is already a statement of intent: Animuomini. A concept that sounds primordial, almost mythological, but which actually says a lot about the present.

A surreal dream

Etro looks back in order to move forward. And no, it's not sterile nostalgia. It's emotional archaeology. The underlying idea is simple and powerful: despite centuries of evolution, modern man remains deeply animalistic. Instinct, character, personality. And also physicality. Facial features, gestures, the way of being in the world: everything refers to a faunal, natural, wild dimension. This gives rise to a collection that plays with the similarity between man and animal, without ever falling into costume or caricature.

The result is a fluid masculinity that moves between opposites: classicism and playfulness, rationality and impulse, sartorial rigor and expressive freedom. A vision that seems tailor-made for a generation that rejects rigid definitions and loves to mix codes.

Patterns, materials, and color choices

Paisley is the star of the show. Not as a simple decorative motif, but as a language of identity. Paisley is everywhere, asking no permission, proudly occupying space, and becoming almost a second skin. A recognizable sign, but one that is constantly changing.

The attention to materials is obsessive, and it shows. Deep velvets, compact and protective knits, pixelated jacquards depicting animal faces, feathers decorating the profiles of impeccable garments. Everything invites you not only to look, but to touch. Fashion as a total sensory experience, in an age when we are hyperstimulated but often disconnected from our bodies.

The color palette reinforces this instinctive and almost literary dimension: dark browns, forest greens, organic neutrals, oxidized reds. Colors that evoke the earth, ancient books, rooms of wonders. Not surprisingly, the collection seems inhabited by characters you might encounter in an imaginary museum or a lucid dream. Animuomini, indeed.

Etro is freedom

The attitude with which these garments are worn is also interesting. Dressing gowns and pajamas become daytime outfits, indoor and outdoor blur together, sweaters are casually tied at the waist, bags are soft and roomy, and caps are worn without too many rules. It is a relaxed, lived-in elegance that rejects performance and etiquette and embraces authenticity.

A strong message at a time in history when image is often more important than substance.

But how relevant is Etro's vision really?

Very much so. Because it speaks of identity as a choice, not as a cage. The idea of clothing as “livery” or “plumage” is central: for Animuomini, unlike animals, clothing is not imposed by nature but chosen, modifiable, fluid. An extension of the self that can change every day. It is a concept that resonates strongly with a generation that uses fashion as a tool for self-narration.

Etro does not chase trends, it metabolizes them. It takes its archive, its historical iconography, and puts it back into circulation with a contemporary eye. The past is not a refuge, but a creative reservoir. The future is not science fiction, but a continuous reconfiguration of existing signs.

In an often loud and hyper-fast fashion landscape, Animuomini is a collection that vibrates at a different frequency. Deeper, more instinctive, more real. And perhaps this is its strength: reminding us that, beneath layers of filters and algorithms, we remain complex, hybrid, somewhat wild creatures. And dressing, in the end, is still one of the most powerful ways to say so.

PHOTO Etro press office