To introduce the Fall presentation, Brunello Cucinelli momentarily ceded the stage to his two blue-eyed, blonde daughters, Camilla and Carolina, both of whom work with him on the development of the collections. Even if he stayed in the background, his influence was palpable in the way his daughters have embraced the ethos and gusto he has established for his company.
The young Cucinellis are fond of craft and the handmade (Carolina has even founded a circle of knitters making crocheted toys for charity): they pivoted the collection around a wide offer of knitwear, often proposed as a substitute for more conventional outerwear. They experimented with elaborate mixed-media techniques to achieve surprisingly feather-light, open-work textures, delicately inlaid with luminous beads or sequins. They called them “couture knits.”
Inspired by Nordic geometries in signature natural tones, chunky oversized cardis or zippered cocoons in furry cashmere or soft alpaca ran counter to loose-fitting double-breasted pantsuits in fluid satin or sequined silk. “We wanted to play on the contrast between something rustic and more feminine, seductive propositions, connecting daywear and eveningwear,” explained the sisters, who are partial to the desire of dressing up which the pandemic has apparently triggered. “People now want to vestirsi bene,” they said.
To that end, since furs are now a no-no, they elevated knitted pieces, shearlings and even piuminos to a luxurious feel, using the intricate techniques of traditional furriers, as in a hooded shearling waistcoat lasered to an incredibly fluffy fur effect and then scattered with silvery sequins. It was one of the collection’s many standout options, which Brunello Cucinelli said were the fast-selling ones. “People now covet special pieces, investment pieces,” he said. “They also want something tactile; there’s a love for the handmade, for something comforting but beautiful. The sense of touch, connection, physicality is now so important.” It’s an attitude signaling that the pandemic is finally behind us, perhaps. Cucinelli said that if the situation improves as he expects, he’ll shut down the vaccination hub he has built on the Solomeo premises. He’ll do it on the first day of Spring. “Then we’ll celebrate with a good match of football, I can’t wait,” he joked. There’s nothing more physical than that.
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