FENDI: THE BRA COMES OUT OF THE CLOSET
In Milan this week, the fashion world decided that the bra finally deserved a promotion to the status of a standalone garment a Copernican revolution in textiles: what was once modestly hidden beneath a sweater is now the main attraction.
It was seen at Prada on Tuesday and at Fendi on Wednesday; the bra reigns supreme, triumphs, and takes to the runway. And as if solid ground were no longer enough to showcase our undergarments, Rihanna acting as a visionary strategist had the idea of the century: suspending a giant bra over a New York street so its shadow would glide across the asphalt. In Italy, they used to call that “hanging out the laundry.” Today, they call it a “concept.”
Then there is Maria, 62, who has evidently just discovered she has a body news that, one hopes, didn’t reach her too late. To celebrate, she summoned playful babydolls, airy dresses, animal prints that never asked to leave the savanna, and lace rompers all set to a disco soundtrack, because nothing says “timeless sensuality” quite like a disco ball.
As for the guests, they were treated to a line from E.E. Cummings as a poetic appetizer: “I like my body when it is with yours.” Charming. One wonders, though, what Cummings would think of being quoted on an invitation card sandwiched between two cut-out portholes in a form-fitting dress. Is Maria looking for love?
For that is the highlight of the show: tuxedo shirts reduced to sexy harnesses, and dresses featuring porthole-style cutouts that plunge lower than the ambitions of a junior press officer’s pitch. As for the fashion house, it prides itself on drawing from its roots: fur, the founding sisters say, was “not just a material” but a symbol of lightness and sensuality. Naturally. In fashion, nothing is ever *just* anything; cotton has a soul, leather has a history, and a tracksuit were one to exist at Fendi would likely have a psychoanalysis.
And to top it all off: black always black Chiuri’s favorite color. It is the height of irony for a house whose logo, designed by Karl Lagerfeld himself in 1965, stands quite literally for “Fun Fur.” We have seen more subtle forms of irony. In short: you might love it or hate it, but whatever you do, you don’t say “yuck.” That is the decree of the House and the Lord.
FM
