Photographed by Nick DeLieto / Courtesy of Dazed Digital
THE FENDI SS18 collection is sporty yet muted in palette — pastels including peaches and aquas adorned the garments. Described as a fusion of Italian Futurism and carefree style (Foley), the Fendi SS18 collection pulls from ancient Egypt without citation.
Left: Detail 1 | Right: Detail 2
The opening v-neck (Detail 1) evokes the shape and pattern of a nemes headdress (Detail 2). Many of the fabrics are fine and shear such as the garments worn by elite Egyptian women (Details 3–5). The set design of the show is an abstract of temple interiors (Details 8–10) and the soundtrack utilizes percussion instruments indicative of Africa.
Left: Detail 3 | Middle: Detail 4 | Right: Detail 5
“Imitation can be seen as the sincerest form of flattery but little knowledge or respect of the origins destroys authenticity.”
Even the styling from the fringed bangs to the winged eyeliner exhibits a look reminiscent of ancient royalty and hieroglyphics (6 & 7). However, a majority of the models walking don’t represent the culture the fashions emulate. Few non-White models walked this show.
Left: Detail 6 | Middle: Detail 7
Some may argue as to why a gone culture bears any sort of significance in the modern world; that ancient fashion is no longer relevant to society, which makes its appropriation acceptable. However, credit not given to the original source is immoral, even if the artifact is in the public domain. Imitation can be seen as the sincerest form of flattery but little knowledge or respect of the origins destroys authenticity. However, the need for Europeans to appropriate other cultures for amusement or spectacle only pushes the discriminatory & disastrous narrative of folklorismus. ■
Left: Detail 8 | Middle: Detail 9 | Right: Detail 10
REFERENCES & IMAGE CREDITS
Foley, Bridget, Fendi Spring RTW 2018, WWD, Sep. 21, 2017
Detail 1: Photographed by Kim Weston Arnold / Courtesy of Vogue Runway
Detail 2: Photographed by Roland Unger
Detail 3: Photographed by Kim Weston Arnold / Courtesy of Vogue Runway
Detail 4: Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Detail 5: Photographed by Kim Weston Arnold / Courtesy of Vogue Runway
Detail 6: Courtesy of The British Museum
Detail 7: Courtesy of PixelFormula & Fendi
Detail 8: Courtesy of Villa Eugénie & Stefan Lubrina
Detail 9: Photographed by Andrii Vergeles
Detail 10: Courtesy of Villa Eugénie & Stefan Lubrina
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Mark Baker-Sanchez is the founder & Editor-In-Chief of DONE. Aside from advocacy through design, he works as a Strategy & Design Coordinator at Jun Group and enjoys reading oversized coffee table books, geeking over typography, doing yoga and buying new trench coats. Find him on Instagram, LinkedIn & discover his portfolio here.
