Carlo Brandelli illuminates the internal courtyard of Florence’s Medici Palace for Kilgour during Pitti
4308091944001
Watch a time-lapse sequence of Carlo Brandelli's Pitti installation within Florence's Medici Palace.
Crossing design disciplines comes easily to creative director Carlo Brandelli, and the latest example of his interdisciplinary prowess is Pitti Uomo's S/S 2016 'designer project', having been extended carte blanche by the Firenze men's fashion fair to flex his creativity.
'For me Florence is the sculpture capital of the world,' explains the Italian designer, standing within the central courtyard of the original Medici ancestral home, now a museum. 'There are bronzed sculptures everywhere and of course many of them are without clothing, so I started to think about what I could do and how an installation could work.' Brandelli's sculptural response is an ambitious artwork composed of 3-metre sheets of glass and mirror that refract the same exacting geometry as his bespoke tailoring. 'It's quite rare for somebody to give you this type of freedom,' he adds of the open brief and resulting installation that will provide the backdrop for his S/S 2016 collection campaign.
Titled 'Reflective 3', the project's inception was a familiar architectural blueprint: 'It's partly a homage to the paper pattern', he explains of the cartamodello that is also the backbone of his Savile Row atelier. This Florentine work leads on from 'Reflective 1', a film project with photographer Nick Knight for Kilgour's rebirth, and 'Reflective 2', which set the scene for an earlier brand campaign.
The commanding 6 x 6 metre square unites 20 rectangular glass panels, encased by 25 bronze mirrored podiums, and explores the notions of reflection, transparency and narcissism. 'Questioning the idea of image, and what man is and what man should be,' he elaborates, adding, 'Transparency is also key to the S/S 2016 collection: this idea of perforation and light', seen through his sherbet hued mohair tailoring.
With colour crowned as the official theme of this season's Pitti parade, Brandelli captures a spectrum of natural pigments - from the salmon pink of the Florentine sunset over Ponte Vecchio to the field green of the Tuscan hinterland - within the piece's giant glass sheets. 'It becomes something else when the sun hits it,' he says, pulling out a series of iPhones films from earlier that day, which capture its environmental immersion from the morning's rain shower to the afternoon's penetrating rays.
'It's not site specific,' Brandelli adds of the work's modular components, 'because the dimensions are variable, but I did produce the geometry to be correct for the space. This is a perfect 12-metre,' he says of Brunelleschi's courtyard blueprint. 'He was obsessed with detail, so this is a perfect 6-metre geometry. It is very accurate.'
As it turns out, art was Brandelli's first obsession: 'I wanted to be a sculptor when I started to do any kind of work,' he continues, rather in awe of the fact that Donatello's 'David' once commanded the same space. 'But the first things that I made were about fabric, that's how it all happened. I made more, and more and then it lead to a collection. To me whether objects or material - it's the same - it's about having good geometry.'
'For me Florence is the sculpture capital of the world,' explains the Italian designer, standing within the central courtyard of the original Medici ancestral home, now a museum. 'There are bronzed sculptures everywhere and of course many of them are without clothing, so I started to think about what I could do and how an installation could work.'
Brandelli's sculptural response is an ambitious artwork composed of 3-metre sheets of glass and mirror that refract the same exacting geometry as his bespoke tailoring.
Titled 'Reflective 3', the project's inception was a familiar architectural blueprint: 'It's partly a homage to the paper pattern', he explains of the cartamodello that is also the backbone of his Savile Row atelier.
The commanding 6 x 6 metre square unites 20 rectangular glass panels, encased by 25 bronze mirrored podiums, and explores the notions of reflection, transparency and narcissism. 'Questioning the idea of image, and what man is and what man should be,' he elaborates.
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox.
'It's not site specific,' Brandelli adds of the work's modular components, 'because the dimensions are variable, but I did produce the geometry to be correct for the space. This is a perfect 12-metre,' he says of Brunelleschi's courtyard blueprint. 'He was obsessed with detail, so this is a perfect 6-metre geometry.'
-
Louise Giovanelli pulls back the curtain on spectacle and suspense at The Hepworth Wakefield
'Louise Giovanelli: A Song of Ascents' is at The Hepworth Wakefield from 23 November 2024 - 27 April 2025
By Hannah Silver Published
-
High jewellery is given a literary twist in Van Cleef & Arpels' new Treasure Island-inspired collection
Van Cleef & Arpels look to Robert Louis Stevenson’s classic adventure story for a high jewellery collection in three parts
By Hannah Silver Published
-
Design Miami 2024 is alive with possibility: here are 13 things to see
Design Miami 2024 opens 4-8 December – let Wallpaper* guide you to the highlights, from dazzling installations to plump sofas and anthropomorphic sculptures
By Ali Morris 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
-
Magliano returns to Pitti Uomo to reverse the rules on menswear
Luca Magliano made his return to Florence’s Pitti Uomo with an ethereal show that captured the ‘impromptu glamour’ of his native Bologna
By Scarlett Conlon Published
-
Fashion in 2024: everything to look forward to
What to look forward to in fashion in 2024 (so far), from an intriguing Met Gala theme to a blockbuster Apple TV+ drama on Christian Dior and his post-war fashion milieu
By Jack Moss Published
-
Ten c champions hybrid design at Pitti Uomo 101
Meanings and materials collide at Fortezza da Basso in Florence, where Italian performance wear specialist Ten c presents its hybrid design-inspired A/W 2022 collection
By Laura Hawkins Last updated
-
Highlights from Pitti Uomo 97 in Florence
We round up the standout moments from A/W 2020's menswear extravaganza in Florence, including runway shows by Pitti Uomo guest designers Jil Sander, Telfar and Random Identities
By Laura Hawkins Last updated
-
Home grown: the Gucci Garden cultivates a green-fingered start to Pitti Uomo 93
By Dal Chodha Last updated
-
Fancy dressing: menswear label Helbers is a balance between rough and refined
By Pei-Ru Keh Last updated
-
Florentine menswear festival Pitti Uomo puts its most exuberant foot forward yet
By Dan Thawley Last updated