Fendi’s Pre-autumn Collection Is All about Socal Cool Vibes

The Roman house of Fendi has injected a whimsical Socal cool into its pre-autumn 2020 collection

As one of Italy’s oldest luxury fashion houses specialising in fur, ready-to-wear and leathergoods, Fendi constantly innovates byreinventing classic collections and collaborating with contemporary artists. This year, themaison is working with with Los-Angeles-based visual artist Joshua Vides to bring a touch of California cool to its pre-autumn 2020 collection designed by Silvia Venturini Fendi. Called California Sky, the collection comprises a wide range of designs that span both apparel and accessories – and all done in Vides’s signature artistic style.

This, however, is not the first time Vides, a self-taught, first-generation Guatemalan-American artist, has worked with Fendi. Last July, he designed the temporary Fendi Caffe at Larrod’s in London, as well as the Peekaboo Bar customisation pop-up. Characterised by his unique and bold black-and-white marker style, Vides has applied his graphic, animation-like treatment on to a range of men’s, women’s and kids’ ready-to-wear and accessories pieces.

On top of his signature style, Vides incorporates a sky-blue and pale-purple palette reminiscent of a beautiful Californian sunset into the collection to create Captivating 3D, layered effects by outlining the edges and seams of a range of urban and resort styles. He also created a striking floral motif and his own version of the Fendi stamps and FF logo, applying these on to the clothing over a background inspired by various shades of the Roman sky, staying true to the dreamy Californian theme as well as paying tribute to the house’s Italian origins.

In this collection, Vides adds an edgy and street vibe to the women’s designs, which includes urban staples such as sneakers, as well as resort styles like kaftans and poplin shirt dresses. It’s no wonder, then, that the collection centres around lightweight materials such as practical-yet-stylish windbreakers in nylon, cycling shorts and printed denim pants. This street-savviness can also be seen on accessories, such as the Peekaboo and Baguette bags, made from extremely soft padded leather, as well as the new Roma Shopper tote bag and dressy shoes like the signature Colibrì sling-backs.

However, given that fur is one of the maison’s specialities, luxurious featherweight fur coats and cardigans along with reversible padded blousons, perforated leather jackets and a selection of elegant evening styles made from a textured cloqué jacquard fabric are also part of the collection.

Vides’s graphic style also prevails in the men’s selection, where 3D tromp l’oeil effects, shaded details, floral motifs and his repurposed FF logo patterns are displayed on cotton jackets, satin blousons, embossed leather outerwear, sweatshirts, T-shirts, denim pants, cotton trousers and Bermuda shorts. Men’s accessories are equally emphasised – the collection includes the Baguette, a small travel case, a backpack, a fanny pack, small leather goods, sneakers, sandals and slides. The kids’ collection also features Vides’s monochromatic graphics and reworked FF logo, adding a playful twist to children’s windbreakers, cotton shirts, shorts and ultra-girly dresses.Kids’ accessories also keep in line with the practical nature of the collection with a selection of slip-on sneakers, sandals and backpacks.

Topping it all off is a new version of Fendi’s bestseller Fendirama women’s sunglasses, featuring a silver metal frame and a graphic interpretation of the Fendi stamps on the silver mirror lenses, as well as new men’s Botanical Fendi sunglasses with an extra-light white shield and Vides’s revamped FF logo mirrored all over the grey lens for a cool Californian outlook.