In apparent correspondence with the heavens above, last night Raf Simons presented his Spring Summer 2011 menswear collection for Jil Sander at Pitti Uomo Nº78, only minutes before pouring rain engulfed the Tuscan skies. High in the hills of Florence at the Villa Gamberaia, the defilé took place on manicured lawns amidst a maze of hedgerows, as a blazing sunset faded and coloured spotlights invaded the 14th century terraces.

As a throbbing electronic soundtrack hushed the audience, bright white lighting carved a route through the gardens and the first glowing silhouette marched down the runway in a bolt of polished nu-rave colour. From intense neon yellow and orange through to popping magenta, turquoise and cobalt blue, the palette injected the minimalist mens collection with a fresh and youthful energy, bouncing like a psychadelic trip across the verdant gardens.

Employing Raf’s technical prowess in outerwear construction and synthetic fabrics, the collection covered a gamut of contrasting tonal combinations in macintosh coats, suiting, knitwear and cuffed micro shorts. Blazers were given belted backs and striped day-glo details in the vein of Simons’ own Fall Winter 2010 collection, and rolled to the elbow layered with striped knitwear. A graphic floral story followed in last summers’ portrait prints, emblazoning crisp white short-sleeve shirting with shadowy digital flowers. The daywear story was supported by a more sombre procession of charcoal suiting – with trousers sitting high and slim, grounded with a round toe black brogue.

With the file of suiting silhouettes making the finale exit, the skies broke and rain took over. Reaching for red, white and black umbrellas (kindly provided in anticipation) everybody fled to the tented garden party awaiting, as the DJ decks began pumping under the able hands of Marcelo Burlon. Happily fed and watered at the buffet, guests wandered around the stunning gardens and through the villa, with the show and the lucky weather the hottest topic of the night.

Covering little new ground in silhouette or styling, the collection certainly won its praise with the progressive use of fearless colour in classic, crisp shapes. With aspects that harked to Raf’s earliest collections for Jil Sander coupled with a firm nod to the recent developments at his own label, Simons turned out a youthful, high-impact collection – a wearable, covetable concept that is sure to garner both editorial and commercial success.

To view the whole collection please click here.