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■ 翻译原文
A little bit of background is needed to understand what contrasting Italian brands set one another. We start with French couture. The Italian fashion newcomers somehow took their inspiration from it, or just defied it, and finally transformed it into a new look.
French haute couture excelled in its extravagance and formality, but it often came with discomfort. While it reined supreme in elegance, it was by no means youthful, let alone sexy. The apparel-making and fitting process was both money and time consuming so that only idle, rich women could afford it.
However, by the mid-1970s, the influence of the French couturiers was waning. Italian couture and ready-to-wear filled the vacuum, catering to a new generation of independent professional women. New designers such as Giorgio Armani and Gianni Versace budded and eventually gathered the global spotlight.
Compared with their French predecessors, Italian couture and ready-to-wear were much less fussy and simpler in line, and created a fresh, easier and graceful feeling. Just like Federico Fellini’s film La Dolce Vita, Italian fashion developed a style of sunny, easy-going and carefree charm, which was contrary to their snobbish French counterparts. (Coco Channel vowed she’d never do ready-to-wear because she didn’t want to dress everybody.)
Unlike fashion names that rose in the 1970s, these two houses boasted their rich history. Both of them started the family business with leather products and then evolved into a multibillion global luxury brand handling various product lines. As it is said in the book of The House of Gucci by Sarah Gay Forden, in Italy the Gucci name had always been associated with elegance and style. Italians were proud of their creativity and artisan traditions and Gucci was one of those names that symbolized quality and craftsmanship.
■ 参考译文
在了解这些意大利品牌之间的差异之前，有必要先提一下法国高级定制。意大利定制时装和成衣与法国高定不可割舍，它们有的从法国“前辈们”那里汲取了灵感，有的则干脆背道而驰，最后终于连法国高定一起华丽蜕变。
法国定制时装在奢华与正式上达到了极致，但缺点也显而易见——毫无舒适感可言。诚然，论优雅法国高定无可比拟，但是看上去毫无朝气，至于性感，就更谈不上了。此外，制衣和试穿过程都相当繁琐，需要投入大量的财力与时间，所以只有那些有钱有闲的贵妇才能穿得起。
但是到了20世纪70年代中期，古老的法国高定便不可避免地衰弱了。意大利定制与成衣成长起来，填补了这一空白，适应了一个新兴顾客群体的需求——独立的职业女性。这也是意大利本土新兴设计师崛起的时代，比如乔治·阿玛尼和詹尼·范思哲，在以后的日子里，正是这些人让意大利时尚界受到了全球瞩目。
与传统的法国高定相比，意大利定制和成衣系列不那么繁琐，线条更加简洁，是另一种平易近人的优雅。就像费里尼的电影《甜蜜生活》给人的感觉一样，意式时尚散发出的品味有一种亲切的阳光气质，打破沉闷因而令人愉悦。这一切都跟高高在上、不可一世的法国高定形成了鲜明对比。（可可·香奈儿女士曾坚定地说，她永远不会发布成衣系列，因为她不可能取悦所有的人。）
与20世纪70年代崛起的品牌不一样，这两个品牌有着引以为豪的悠久历史。这两个品牌最先都是从做皮具生意的家族企业起家，然后逐渐发展成了拥有多条产品线并具有全球影响力的奢侈品帝国。如同Sarah Gay Forden在她所著的The House of Gucci一书中所说，在意大利古驰这个名字常常与优雅和品位联系在一起。意大利人对他们经典品牌所代表的创造力和传统手工很是自豪，古驰就是其中之一，因为这些都是高端品质和精湛手工的代名词。