Silvia Venturini Fendi has established her family’s brand at the cusp of forward-thinking fashion with her latest menswear collection yet again this season. Keeping it all very Fendi, à la blocks of glaring egg-yolk yellow and cobalt blue furs, jigsaw arrangements of sombre-toned furs and then some more tame fabrics and tartan patterns to calm it all down, the creative director did well to make it all unmistakably worthy of her surname.
To enliven this surefire formula Venturini Fendi also added prints of child-like illustrations to make sure the audience was paying attention, framing it all the while with the finest raw materials. The luxury of being such a fashionably niche brand it would seem.
Elsewhere, that niche brand factor worked its charm in through derivatives of the bag-bug critters working their appliqued way out of pockets and onto necklaces.
An element which stood tremendously well alone outside of AW16’s usual and rather unsurprising luxury splendour was bright sparks such as the silk pyjama-like wear seen underneath the heavy layers. It seems a heavier emphasis on things like this would really open eyes up to what else Fendi menswear could be, especially when designers are making such exciting menswear moves around them in Milan.
For now however, this was a collection that will keep Glass coming back to lap up even more next season and beyond.
by Liam Feltham
Images courtesy of Fendi