By Giulia Piceni. Images by the I’M Firenze Digest Editorial Board and Art Department.
In the same way as there is just one Monalisa in the world, masterpieces are one-time only events that happen for fortunate circumstances; only the great brush of a painter is able to make that one painting’s magic relive on a new canvas.
And that’s exactly what Istituto Marangoni Firenze is aiming to succeed this year again with the long-awaited Pitti Uomo Week Party. If last edition’s theme was Futureverse, what could possibly be the one of this year? Hyper Icons, of course!
Awaited from the student’s Florentine community more than Anna Wintour’s MET Gala, this years’ event aims, taking place on January 9th during Pitti Uomo 2024 in Florence (stay tuned, more details coming soon!) will include various interpretations of the same theme, leaving everyone free to twist it as they please.
Ranging from fashion, music and art icons, passing through more conceptual ideas and touching even show-stopping design pieces, the participants at the school’s party during Pitti Uomo surely have a lot of material to ponder in order to pick the best fit to become the dancefloor’s star.
While waiting for more suggestions along with time and place of the event, here is an moodboard-based dresscode that will easily guide you into your choice: the outfit-planners will thank for this, I know for sure.
1. PITTI UOMO WEEK PARTY: MUSIC, FASHION, ART (AND MUCH MORE) ICONS
We can all agree on the fact that in the latest times the term iconic has been overused, misused and profaned. This first dress-up category aims to reconsider the way in which this word is perceived by taking inspiration from true icons of our times.
From the eclectic androgynous style of David Bowie to the subtle elegance of Audrey Hepburn, from the provocative style blinking to queerness signature of Madonna to the low-waisted floor-lengths skirts that distinguished Cher, here are some figures from which you can take inspiration to respect the event’s dress code while exceeding in creativity.
One’s definition of icon is very personal: it could even be yourself. So own it and make your outfit shout it: assured success under the disco lights.
2. HOW MANY COLORS INSPIRE YOU FOR PITTI UOMO WEEK PARTY LOOK?
An icon is much more than a single person, a dress, a core. An icon can be found also in colors as this second category illustrates. For example, in the artworld is there a more iconic color than Yves Klein’s spiritual and religious blue? Did you also know that the French artist was the source of inspiration for a dress designed by Phoebe Philo for Céline SS 2017? Well, well, well, maybe I should have gatekept that because it would have been an awesome idea for my costume!
Nevermind: colors are always a great source of inspiration that can link them to brands along with general concepts. For example the shocking pink that has exhausted our eyes in the last months has become both a symbol of PPP era at Valentino along with Y2K’s bimbo attitude and more recently with Barbiecore. Furthermore, bright green could be used as a symbol of ecology and respect of nature but I’m sure that the fashionistas will associate it to Bottega Veneta’s green.
Play with whatever resonates better with you: pretty hard to miss the dress code!
3. THINK AT OBJECTS AS HYPER ICONS
Take the colorful lines by Ettore Sottass, combine them with the timeless green of the Pratone, add a shine from the Ultrafragola, accompany it with the lugubrious elegance of the Pipistrello lamp and then the outfit it’s all done.
This third category dedicated to objects aims to redefine what the adjective iconic can be. We tend to link it to people but what about history-shaping objects such as the ones quoted above and the many more that have contributed to the evolution of design?
Bring them to life again through your dress code and unlock your creativity with this stylistic challenge!
But what if I tell you that there are even other suggestion-categories that you can be inspired to? Stay tuned for the upcoming article on this topic!
4. Hyper-sensoriality: stretching the possibilities of creativity and dress code
The surprises aren’t over yet, as the fourth inspiring category is hyper-sensoriality. It might sound a bit confusing at first, but let me explain it through a quick Proustian game. If I asked you about the smell of your childhood, what would it be? The French writer would say a Madeleine, but many of us would recall the scent of their mother, talcum powder or lukewarm milk. Perfumes and smells have a great power on our perception and memory, and they are worth celebrating through cutting-edge and unexpected outfits at our party.
In perfumery, some iconic fragrances could act as a prompt for an outfit, such as the shape of Jean Paul Gaultier’s perfumes Le Male, and the recent Gaultier Divine and Classique, all providing different takes on the human body.
Also, if the spirit of Proust is still with us, we would love for him to come to our party. A madeleine-shaped costume would be a unique addition to the dancefloor.
5. Just objects? What about places?
It’s not always necessary to think about the iconic nature of objects, but this concept can be easily applied to places as well. For instance, the main fashion capitals could easily be represented. Imagine a group of four friends, where one dressed as a fashionable Milanese lady – or sciura –, the other one as a cool London girl who has just come out of Cyberdog in Camden Town, the other one rocking a full Collina Strada attire (complete with animal patterns) and the fourth embodying the ultimate Miss Dior. Quite of a kind, right?
This is just one inspiration, but you could consider even other places such as the legendary Studio54 and the Bianca Jagger entrance on a white horse (recently recreated by Michelle Lamy at a Rick Owen’s rave in Tokyo) or the colourful Jardins Majorelle owned by Yves Saint Laurent.
You can find more inspiration on our mood boards. Now it’s up to you to unleash your creativity and surprise everyone on January 9th.
