Miami Art and Design Week 2022: the best fashion moments

Miami Art and Design Week – the colloquial name for the combination of Art Basel Miami Beach and Design Miami – begins today (29 November 2022), seeing international artists, designers, gallerists and collectors arrive en masse in the beachside city for the various art and design happenings taking place over the coming days. The fashion industry is present too; in recent years, brands have chosen the week to unveil collaborations, stage exhibitions, or undertake runway shows (memorably, last year included a Louis Vuitton menswear show, an homage to artistic director Virgil Abloh who had died just days prior). 

The 2022 edition is no exception – among others, Bottega Veneta, Saint Laurent and Fendi will all be present this week in Miami, showcasing various projects spanning art, design and fashion. Here, Wallpaper* selects the best crossover moments at Miami Art and Design Week 2022. 

The best fashion crossovers at Miami Art and Design Week 2022

Bottega Veneta and Gaetano Pesce: ‘Come Stai?’ at Design Miami

Matthieu Blazy’s acclaimed sophomore outing at Bottega Veneta, held in Milan this past September, featured a set designed in collaboration with 83-year-old Italian designer Gaetano Pesce. The space, called ‘the world in a small room’ by Blazy, comprised a swirled resin floor in Pesce’s signature saturated palette, alongside 400 equally colourful chairs crafted from cotton canvas dipped in resin (it marked the first original chair in some years from Pesce). Each one was entirely unique, some featuring naive motifs by the designer – from handbags and smiley faces to question marks – in an attempt to capture the diversity of human life. ‘It is about the human being; we are all different,’ he said at the time. ‘We are all different and this is our defining quality – otherwise, we are just a copy. We are all originals, and this is one of the themes of my design.’

The various chairs will go on display as part of the Design Miami 2022 fair, where a selection will also be available to purchase. An accompanying book – titled Come Stai?, the name given to the original project – will also be released, exploring ‘the ideation, approach, and process of the collaboration’ in a conversation between Pesce and Hans Ulrich Obrist. Like the chairs, each cover of the limited-edition book will be entirely unique, its publication celebrated with a book-signing by Pesce which takes place 30 November 2022 from 4pm to 6pm at the fair.

Come Stai?, the exhibition, runs at 153 NE 40th St, Miami, FL 3313 from 30 November 2022 to 4 December 2022

Saint Laurent Rive Droite: Sex by Madonna, curated by Anthony Vaccarello

One of contemporary photography’s most controversial tomes, Madonna’s Sex book, a collaboration with image-maker Steven Meisel, was banned by the Vatican and caused waves of conservative protest across America on its 1992 release. Its legacy is celebrated in a new exhibition by Saint Laurent curated by the house’s creative director Anthony Vaccarello alongside the musician herself. The show coincides with the re-release of the book as part of Saint Laurent Rive Droite (the house’s ‘creative and cultural destination’, which has stores in Paris and Los Angeles), and features large-format versions of the book’s now-iconic images. It’s an exploration of the ‘once-shocking now timeless’ volume and its ‘liberated views of sexual self-expression’, which have inspired countless artists in its wake. The ephemeral gallery is found on Miami’s beachfront, where a limited-edition number of copies, signed by Madonna and benefitting her Raising Malawi fund, will be sold via auction, alongside limited-edition T-shirts and tote bags. 

The Saint Laurent beachfront gallery will be free to visit for anyone over the age of 18 from 29 November 2022, to 4 December 2022.

Louis Vuitton at Art Basel Miami Beach

Louis Vuitton takes part in Art Basel Miami Beach 2022 with a special exhibit featuring works by some of the world’s best-known artists (many of which have previously collaborated with the house). Titled the ‘Louis Vuitton lounge’, the space displays pieces including two wax figures of Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama (created by the artist herself), a panda figure by Takashi Murakami balancing on a vintage Vuitton trunk, paintings by Richard Prince and Alex Katz, a photograph by Jean Larivière, and the new Artycapucines collection, whereby various artists leave their unique imprint on the house’s Capucines handbag. Elsewhere, a celebration of Vuitton’s relationship with Kusama takes place – marking ten years since she first united with the house – revealing a teaser of a new upcoming collaboration. 

Louis Vuitton will present at the Miami Beach Convention Center, 1901 Convention Center Drive, Miami Beach, FL 33139 from 29 November – 4 December 2022.

Fendi presents Lukas Gschwandtner’s Triclinium at Design Miami

Fendi has invited Austrian artist Lukas Gschwandtner to display a new work as part of Design Miami, a continuation of his fascination with imagery of women reclining on chaise longues. ‘I have always noticed depictions of reclining female figures, carved into building façades and friezes,’ he told Wallpaper* earlier this year. Titled Triclinium, it is a continuation of his Pillow Portraits series – ’wearable canvas sculptures referencing historical portraits of women’ – with the new furniture-inspired works on display in Miami drawing particular inspiration from Fendi’s history of leather work and use of calico in the atelier. ‘The moment the sculpture is worn, it immediately directs the body to impersonate the corresponding painting or artwork,’ says Gschwandtner.

The artist’s reimagining of Fendi’s ‘Peekaboo’ handbag, created by filling each compartment with plaster before cutting away the original material, accompanies the exhibit. 

Triclinium is on show from 29 November – 4 December 2022 at Design Miami.

Stone Island’s 40th birthday celebrations

Stone Island was founded by Massimo Osti in 1982; 40 years on, it is one of the world’s most recognised clothing brands, now synonymous with subcultural movements and the underground music scene. To celebrate, the Italian brand is hosting a party in Miami on 29 November 2022, promising performances and sets from Jamie XX, O.BEE, Tomas Station and Jonny Rock. An accompanying collection – titled 82/22 – celebrates four decades of technical innovation, reinventing archival pieces in the cutting-edge fabrications long linked with the brand. 

The Codes c/o Architecture by Virgil Abloh for Nike

28 November 2022 marked the one-year anniversary of Virgil Abloh’s death – a designer whose resonance continues to be keenly felt. A new exhibition, debuting in Miami, celebrates his fruitful partnership with Nike, a label he collaborated with throughout his career. Titled ‘The Codes c/o Architecture by Virgil Abloh for Nike’ and held alongside Virgil Abloh Securities, the four-day happening will revisit the agenda-setting collaboration through an exploration of Abloh’s approach to design.

‘Virgil and Nike thrived together because he understood the brand’s role as a cornerstone of culture while Nike understood the importance of truly supporting creatives and their visions,’ says Shannon Abloh, the chief executive officer and managing director of VA Securities. ’This beautiful four-day experience at Miami Art Week will honour their legacy together and champion both Virgil’s open-source methods and his genuine commitment to collaborating with and inspiring others.’

For information on opening hours and programming of ‘Virgil Abloh: The Codes c/o Architecture,’ follow @arch___itecture.