The Extraordinary Armani Silos In Milan

This month, coordinating with the label's 40th anniversary, Armani opened a museum and exhibition space in Milan called Armani Silos. It is dedicated to Giorgio Armani's designs of the last 40 years, displaying around 600 items of clothing and over 200 accessories. Located in the fashionable Tortona area in Milan, the building is a former granary for the Nestlé company and is comprised of exhibition space, a café, gift shop and digital archive.

Find a holiday rental in Milan and you could experience this unique museum for yourself.

According to Mr Armani himself, it would be wrong to call it a museum. To him, that suggests something static and unchanging which does not match his vision for this space.

He plans to renew the collections with pieces from new collections every six months and is already considering expanding and buying another space for displaying Armani's Couture and Emporio Armani collections and archives.

This will make the whole venture more dynamic, and closer to the frenetic pace of the fashion world than dusty spaces for preserving the past.

The building itself is just as fascinating as the clothes housed inside. Mr Armani oversaw the renovations himself with two aims in mind; to preserve something of what it was before and to maintain his aesthetic of careful restraint. The layout of the building is modelled after a basilica with an open space four floors high with two levels of naves overlooking it on either side. The ceilings are painted black, the floors are of grey cement floors. Everything is geometric, regular.

The result is a stately and striking building that houses the collection to perfection. One could imagine, however, that if it were empty, it would lend an entirely different atmosphere - intimidating and uninviting.

Strong backdrops frame, but do not distract from, the clothes. Cut-outs in the walls provide striking vistas across the works and the whole result is almost otherworldly. The echoes of basilicas and religion are obvious and it does feel as though Armani has made something sacred of his work.

Organisation is thematic rather than chronological which, again, adds to the visual drama of the space as pieces that are alike stare back at you in parades. Sections include daywear, exotic looks, colour and more.

This truly is a unique space where the contents and building work hand in hand to confront the viewer in the most visceral fashion possible and make them reconsider the clothes in new contexts and new ways. Entry is €12.00 with reduced rates available and it is open Tuesday to Sunday 11am-8pm, with later opening on Thursday and Saturday. If you are headed to Milan and have an interest in fashion or design, make sure to stop by.