After excitedly waiting for the new collection, I was disappointed with the reveal of the Spring 2023 Couture collection by Daniel Roseberry, which he allegedly devoted his time to. Seeing videos and photos circulating of Dante’s Inferno-inspired pieces with crudely placed animal heads attached was already a lot to witness. 

With a lion’s head randomly popping out of the side of model Irina Shayk’s torso, a snow leopard on Shalom Harlow’s chest area, and a wolf on Naomi Campbell’s shoulder, even their fierce catwalks couldn’t fill the emptiness that these fake taxidermy heads left to the imagination. What’s sad is that these aren’t the worst outfits among the collection. 

For this article, I’ll be discussing looks that stood out to me from the Schiaparelli Spring 2023 Couture collection by Daniel Roseberry. Out of the thirty-two looks presented, I’ve decided on four pieces I think saved the collection. 

Starting with look 3 of the collection: The moment I saw it, I was instantly hooked. An exaggerated look like this is a staple silhouette for the house. The quilted texturing of the coat makes it look somewhat like an optical illusion; you just want to keep moving with it. The collar is extra, but it works given the coat’s thickness and longer sleeves. 

The cream-colored heels with a golden keyhole at the tiptoes of each are definitely a change of pace, considering that there were golden human toes on most of the shoes in the last few Schiaparelli collections. 

I like them, but they’re not as bold as past choices Roseberry’s made. The eye-shaped earrings are impressive given that the jewelry is handmade, but the color of the eyes could’ve been gold, or at least another color, so they would’ve stood out more. 

And though the addition of a belt would have messed with the completely laced-up backing, I wish there was something on the cinched part of the coat. Maybe a keyhole to match the shoes and the theme of “entering” the gates of Hell. 

Here, look 11, though with understated color, gets its point across effortlessly. The broad-shouldered, statuesque silhouette gloriously returns in tuxedo form. The strong-armed sleeves have the beautiful addition of a dark to burnt orange brown ombre. Besides the cinched waist making another flawless appearance, the v-shaped neckline reaches downward to new territory: the belly-button. It’s an instant attention-grabber. 

Though I’m a fan of the choice of neckline, I do think that something overall is missing from the piece. Nothing except the chest area of the tuxedo stands out. Even the shoes have neutral coloring. And if you look close enough, the infamous human toes atop the heels can be seen, but they’re not colored in their usual stand-out gold. Since no earrings or other jewelry were included in the look, it becomes obvious that the designer thought that the neckline was enough. However, the addition of dangle earrings would’ve blown the audience away with a lustful addition to this piece. 

Speechless. Everything about the creation of this mosaic-like corset is exquisite. 

Look 22, the top half at least, is a masterpiece. The carefully inlaid genuine emerald and gold top-piece is a clear step forward from the infamous ab-breastplate that debuted in Roseberry’s Spring 2021 Couture collection. The tendrils flying off the top are reminiscent of constellations, making the model’s face seem like a divine being peering through the stars to see the world. I could go on and on about how the gorgeous creation allows an onlooker to view the model materializing into goddess form as they descend from the heavens!

But I’d be ignoring my critique of the trousers. The model, at least in the picture, looks as if they are stepping on pant-legs as they walk. Though the trousers definitely go with the top half, it’s obvious that they’re meant to act as an underline of the important subject above. Another thing: the model is wearing earrings that match the emerald corset-like structure around her torso. The look is dazzling enough without the earrings. It seems like Roseberry became a bit too greedy.  

Look 12. What is there to say? There’s no jewelry, which I feel could have added some energy to this exhausted outfit. When looking at it, I wonder what exactly is the model carrying in her arm — leftover fabric? 

Whatever it is, it’s not the Schiaparelli I’m used to. The slit in the dress looks like something exploded out of it, and that is made more apparent by the contrast in materials used for the fitted aspects of the dress. The nude shoe with the outfit was also an odd choice. Something gold and black, whether it’s the shoes or earrings, would have done something more for the dress and the model. It looks like an unfinished product — the final outcome of ideas that ran out. It’s damnable. 

Since Roseberry became the brand’s creative director in 2019, he has created several interesting collections. Taking inspiration from not only the brand’s founder, Elsa Schiaparelli, but also from the 80s, Roseberry had his ab-breastplates, shoes with golden human toes, extravagant and campy earrings, and piercing blue eyeglasses making appearances all over the red carpet and Instagram feeds for the past three years. 

Overall, it was hard to choose just one outfit to encapsulate the disappointments of this recent collection. Many outfits look last-minute and thrown together. It lacked the vibrant and bold colors I’m used to seeing in Schiaparelli collections. 

On a rating scale of 1-10, I would give this collection a 5.5. The majority of the collection was either basic, poorly fitted, or had gorgeous accessories that upstaged the outfit they were supposed to be complementing. As I looked at each outfit, they increasingly got worse as I became more disappointed. 

If I were Roseberry, I’d be embarrassed that the only reason my show is going viral is because the most interesting outfit of the day was on Doja Cat, an audience member! Roseberry has the talent to make fabulous runway looks, but he let the story of Dante’s “Inferno” outshine his collection. I hope that Roseberry makes it out of the ninth ring of Hell. Before the bad luck he brought with this collection gets the better of him.