Pitti Immagine Uomo transforms Florence into its artful canvas with a host of fashion events
![The Florentine trade fair](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/pR8VP4TPKE2ykJEEMBXxFb-415-80.jpg)
After last season's scheduling clash, which saw Florence's Pitti Immagine Uomo square off against the London Collections: Men, the Italians were no doubt keen to reassert their credentials. While London may win column inches for its fresh, young talent and enthralling subculture, they might have argued that Italy combines history with commercial might.
The timing of the 86th Pitti instead coincided with the 60th anniversary of the Centro di Firenze per la Moda Italiana. It was the perfect excuse for the city-wide style takeover dubbed 'Firenze Hometown of Fashion', involving some of Florence's most illustrious venues.
Four Florentine powerhouses - Salvatore Ferragamo, Gucci, Emilio Pucci and Ermanno Scervino - were invited to stage events. First up was Pucci, which turned the Baptistery of San Giovanni into a beacon of colour (and an apt monument to the brand, with its penchant for joyful excess) by dressing it in the label's 'Battistero' print, designed by its namesake founde in 1957.
Gucci and Ferragamo opted for something a little more intimate. The former hosted a small gathering to celebrate the reopening of the historic Kering-owned Richard Ginori flagship on Via de' Rondinelli. The boutique also launched an exhibition of three original porcelain works by Gio Ponti, artistic director of the house from 1923 to 1930. Meanwhile, Museo Salvatore Ferragamo unveiled an engaging new exhibition, 'Equilibrium', which explores balance, movement and posture through art and ephemera and shows off gems from the house's extensive footwear archive.
While the other events celebrated the aesthetic and ethos of Italian fashion, Ermanno Scervino instead hammered home the financial clout of the Italian industry. The label threw an opulent dinner for hundreds of guests at the majestic Forte Belvedere, made famous recently for the wedding of musician (and former Wallpaper* Design Awards judge) Kanye West, who was present at the event.
Elsewhere, at Teatrino Lorenese, G-Star Raw showcased its commitment to clearing the oceans of plastic pollution with its first Raw for the Oceans collection, made from retrieved ocean plastic innovated into denim. Pharrell Williams (another of our illustrious Design Awards judges) added his own star power to the project, by curating the theatre in a blue-washed scheme.
Given the prominence of the participants, it was apt that this season's menswear guest design brand was Z Zegna, which returned to Florence newly conceptualised. Zegna Sport and Z Zegna have merged into one label, and designers Murray Scallon and Paul Surridge are working together to merge the two cornerstones of menswear - sportswear and tailoring. They hope to draw a busy yet moneyed urban shopper, whom Surridge dubs 'a new kind of traveller'. 'We're all so mobile today with business trips and commuting,' he says. 'Most people don't live five minutes from work, so they're travelling or cycling.'
The pair responded to this new reality with hard-working fabrications normally only found in sportswear. Suits came thermo-regulated in water-resistant Techmerino, while outerwear in resistant stretch fabric was constructed without seams, using thermo glue. Given the focus on function, fashion almost took a back seat. Designs were understated, clean and minimal.
The focus on practicality at Zegna couldn't have contrasted more with the unapologetic celebration of excess at La Perla's menswear presentation. The showy fabrications - borrowed from women's lingerie - and quirky flying oyster print may have looked outlandish, but then Pitti wouldn't be Pitti without a bit of peacocking.
Entitled 'Monumental Pucci' the octagonal monument was dressed in the label's 'Battistero' print, designed by Emilio Pucci in 1957
The house also hosted a celebratory cocktail in honour of the presentation of archival designs, on show at Palazzo Pucci
Heritage prints were displayed alongside archival imagery
3633317424001
Watch 'Monumental Pucci' come to life
Elsewhere, Gucci hosted a small gathering to celebrate the reopening of the historic Kering-owned Richard Ginori flagship on Via de' Rondinelli
Outside the Museo Salvatore Ferragamo in Santa Trinita Square, guests admired Cecil Balmond's 'H_edge' installation comprising suspended metallic pieces
The brand's 'Equilibrium' exhibition focused on the anatomy of the foot, studied extensively by Salvatore Ferragamo
Exploring balance, movement and posture through art and ephemera, gems from the house's extensive footwear archive were put in the spotlight
Running until April 2015, the show features work by artists from Rodin, Calder and Matisse to Albrecht Dürer and Giulio Paolini. Pictured are 'Untitled' (centred), Mario Ceroli, 2002 and 'Domain LXVIII' (right), by Antony Gormley, 2009.
There is a focus on ballet, with archival images of Nijinsky, Isadora Duncan, Martha Graham and Trisha Brown
Ermanno Scervino hammered home the financial clout of the Italian fashion industry, throwing an opulent dinner for hundreds of guests at the majestic Forte Belvedere
A model wearing Ermanno Scervino takes in views over Florence
This season's guest menswear designer was Z Zegna, newly merged with Zegna Sport. Designers Murray Scallon and Paul Surridge married the two cornerstones of menswear: sportswear and tailoring
The pair responded with hard-working fabrications normally only found in sportswear
Outerwear in resistant stretch fabric was constructed without seams, using thermo glue
Suits came thermo-regulated in water-resistant Techmerino
Given the focus on function, fashion took a back seat. Designs were understated, clean and minimal
Meanwhile, La Perla's debut menswear presentation celebrated excess with its new loungewear category...
...along with showy fabrications borrowed from its women's lingerie legacy
Wallpaper* Newsletter + Free Download
For a free digital copy of August Wallpaper*, celebrating Creative America, sign up today to receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories
-
Take off: Mathieu Lehanneur's Olympic Cauldron rises into the Parisian night sky
The Paris 2024 Olympics’ opening ceremony was closed with a soaring cauldron spectacle that will go down in history
By Hugo Macdonald Published
-
Phaidon’s new Graphic Classics is a lavish greatest hits of graphic design
Graphic Classics is a compendium of seven centuries of visual culture, from the everyday and ephemeral to visionary works that reshaped our world
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
Birley Chocolate hits the sweet ’n’ chic spot in London’s Chelsea
The new Birley Chocolate shop, a sibling to Birley Bakery, is a confection of colour as delicious as its finely crafted goods
By Melina Keays Published
-
‘Things are not what they seem’: Unpacking the S/S 2025 menswear shows
Wallpaper* fashion features editor Jack Moss explores the trends and takeaways from this season’s menswear shows, from an embrace of ‘irrational clothing’ to couture-level craft and eclectic new takes on tailoring
By Jack Moss Published
-
Revisiting the showstopping runway sets of men’s fashion week
As Men’s Fashion Week S/S 2025 draws to a close, Wallpaper* picks the season’s most transporting runway sets, from giant cats at Dior Men to a ‘fairytale ravescape’ at Prada
By Jack Moss Published
-
Pitti Uomo 106: what we learnt from the Florence menswear fair
While this season’s Pitti Uomo guest designers embraced Florence’s uniquely cinematic setting, at the fair itself, brands presented comprehensive offerings that crossed seasons and celebrated Italian craft
By Jack Moss Published
-
Gucci Beauty’s first lipstick by Sabato De Sarno is the perfect shade of deep red
Gucci Beauty’s Rouge à Lèvres Mat in Rosso Ancora made its debut at the Cruise 2025 show at London’s Tate Modern in make-up looks by Lucia Pieroni
By Hannah Tindle Published
-
Gucci filled Tate Modern’s Tanks with thousands of plants for its latest Cruise show
Gucci’s Cruise 2025 show, the first by Sabato De Sarno, saw a ‘tapestry’ of plants fill the Herzog & de Meuron-designed Tanks in London’s Tate Modern as a dramatic backdrop to the show
By Jack Moss Published
-
Tennis fashion for serving a style ace this summer
As Wimbledon begins on Monday (1 July 2024), the fashion brands serving up tennis style this summer, from Gucci’s 1970s-inspired capsule collection to a Loewe T-shirt from ‘Challengers’
By Jack Moss Last updated
-
Highlights from the jet-setting Cruise 2025 shows
Our pick of the globe-trotting Cruise 2025 shows, from Dior’s takeover of Drummond Castle, Scotland to Max Mara’s season finale in Venice
By Jack Moss Last updated
-
Utilitarian men’s fashion that will elevate your everyday
From Prada to Margaret Howell, utilitarian and workwear-inspired men’s fashion gets an upgrade for S/S 2024
By Jack Moss Published