We discover more of the Fendi Fall/Winter 2021, the first to be designed by Artistic Director Kim Jones
Kim Jones, Silvia Vneturini Fendi and Delfina Delettrez Fendi by Brett Lloyd
Kim Jones presented his debut women’s ready-to-wear collection for Fendi for Fall/Winter 2021, beginning a new chapter that continues the legacy of the Roman House but also carves out the future.
Kim Jones
Kim Jones was inspired by the wardrobes of the five Fendi sisters for the elegant collection which paid tribute to the traditional key codes of the house and the women of the Fendi family who have embodied its legacy from the beginning. Taking inspiration from their wardrobes, Jones’ first collection featured elements of the past but presented in a truly modern way.\
He drew on specifics from the archival wardrobes of the Fendi sisters including the bell sleeves of a washed mink and bonded suede coat, the pinstripes of their office attire now rendered in silken shirting or perfectly proportioned wool tailoring, and a utilitarian shirt jacket, inspired by Silvia Venturini Fendi’s daily uniform, which is elevated into a new, luxurious, shearling iteration with a bonded mink interior. “The Fendi family are women of intellect who work hard – and that’s what I wanted to celebrate,” notes Jones. “A powerful dynasty.”
Double cashmere and camel outerwear which extends into mink tricot or wool-fringed scarves appear at once profoundly practical and deeply desirable, its form elsewhere translated into draped shirts and dresses. “I’m taking the amazing, strong women who I both know and work with, and listening to their needs,” Jones continues. “There’s a usefulness to the collection, explored in a chic, timeless way.”
Backstage Documentary by Malick Bodian
An honorary member of the Fendi family was also acknowledged through this special collection. Jones revived Karl Lagerfeld’s Karligraphy monogram which can be seen in the details of the looks. The Fendi First shoe was also referenced: its architecture heel reworked for a new era. The remarkable craftsmanship of the Fendi ateliers is clear throughout – in a mink herringbone jacket made featherlight through its suspended construction, leather suiting inset with ajour embroidery, or Karligraphy monograms laser-cut into suede.
The embossed Selleria stitching applied to gabardine trenches, double cashmere coats or leather accessories is a tribute to that meticulous exceptionalism – a quality most visible to the women who will wear the clothes. “Fun isn’t always just about bright colours,” says Jones. “It can be about really luxurious self-indulgence, which pleases the person wearing it more than anyone else.” This is a collection designed with those women in mind: clothing that translates everyday femininity into hyper-luxurious terrain.
Bags for this collection were designed by Silvia Venturini Fendi who debuted the FENDI First which pays homage to the off-kilter irreverence of the brand, with the Fendi monogram tilted into the frame of a clutch. It is available in a number of sizes depending on the preference of the wearer. New silhouettes were also presented through the FENDI Way tote and FENDI Touch shoulder bag. While classics including the Peekaboo and Sunshine Shopper are seen from a new perspective, distorted into new proportions and decorated with Selleria details.
This season, the FENDI hand in hand project – which enlists craftspeople from each of Italy’s 20 regions to reimagine the iconic Baguette – translates Campania’s artisanal excellence into a limited-edition series of objects d’art. Here the same, intricate wood inlays found in 6th-century Benedictine monasteries become a veneered, structured Baguette with a baroque floral motif.
Backstage Documentary by Malick Bodian
Jewellery was designed by Delfina Delettrez Fendi who this season introduces the new FENDI O’Lock which evolves the Fendi logo into a graphic symbol. The line comes complete with padlocks that can only be opened by dialling “Fendi”. Wax seal pendants are stamped with Karligraphy and metal cuffs covered in leather are embellished with Selleria details to reflect the empowered sensibility of the Fendi woman.
