Fendi
MILAN, October 4, 2003
By
Forget last year’s fierce, sci-fi/medieval maidens; they’re history. Now that fashion has turned 180 degrees away from winter’s aggressive, angst-ridden armor, the ever-quixotic Karl Lagerfeld has gone back to the drawing board to sketch an alternative version to summer’s main theme of softness and femininity.The collection was informed by the idea of circle-cutting, which showed up in the construction of jackets with flounces emphasizing the shoulder line; in petal-shaped skirts; and in cummerbunds. Lagerfeld traced out that soft geometry with contrasting piping, making clothes with an experimental feel that somehow also evoked the work of Bill Gibb and Jean Muir in 1970's London.
Focus at Fendi is always on showcasing the company’s state-of-the-art developments in treating fur and skins. The latest how-did-they-do-that technology has produced an extraordinary transparent leather and a perforated ultra-fine suede, both of which trick the eye by narrowing the distinctions between fabric and animal by-product. It wasn’t all about science, however. Lagerfeld wrapped up the show with some cloudy, watercolor chiffons that floated on the general breeze of the summer trend.
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