Established for over a century, Pitti Immagine Uomo is the hottest Florentine fashion event. Crossing decades and going through multiple styles, this trade show has reinvented itself to stay relevant.
Showcasing a variegated range of exhibitors at Fortezza Da Basso, the event’s key points were two runway shows starring the exclusive collections of Jan-Jan Van Essche and Martine Rose.
Pitti Uomo 103 at the Fortezza da Basso from 10 to 13 January 2023
The highlights from Pitti Immagine Uomo 103
Already in its 103rd edition, Pitti Immagine Uomo has proved to be the leading event in the menswear area, letting the dance of the fashion month begin from Fortezza Da Basso. Exercising a pull of attraction for almost 18000 visitors, 6500 selling and distributing platforms had the chance to showcase their products, contributing to shaping a new perception of menswear in line with the present and anticipating the future.
Pitti Immagine Uomo 103
Highlights from the three-day programme include the first-ever fashion show by Jan-Jan Van Essche and the one by the British menswear designer Martine Rose, one of the few eligible figures to replace Virgil Abloh at Louis Vuitton.
Performance blurs fashion and art with Jan-Jan Van Essche
The austere interiors of Santa Maria Novella in the picturesque south of the city renamed Oltrarno made the setting for the first-ever show by Belgian designer Jan-Jan Van Essche: pure conceptualism coming together with pure forms and a careful choice of materials.
Jan-Jan Van Essche's first ever show was pure conceptualism combined with a careful choice of materials
Before this case, the 2010-founded brand had never physically displayed through a runway its collections, considering them superfluous and easily replaceable by other captivating ways of narrating, such as photography and videos.
With his debut show, Jan-Jan Van Essche shared his philosophy and approach to contemporary fashion at the Santa Maria Novella Museum and Convent
The Pitti Immagine Uomo show culminated with a moving performance choreographed by Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui: a sublime ending for a visual poem made of loose-genderless silhouettes, undyed raw textiles and “no frills” garments with a mysterious Far East allure.
Jan-Jan Van Essche's Rite show culminated in a performance choreographed by Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui
Jan-Jan Van Essche's autumn-winter 2023/24 show in Florence
Martine Rose’s Anglo-Italian remix takes centre stage at Pitti Immagine Uomo 103
In Piazza del Mercato Nuovo, in the city centre, the setting of Martine Rose’s show reinvented the closed loggia that usually hosts a leather goods market into a 1970s sophisticated disco club enriched with mirrors and olive-green carpet flooring.
Martine Rose's autumn-winter 2023/24 co-ed show in Florence as guest designer at Pitti Uomo 103
The street casting reflected the influence of the three years Rose spent at Balenciaga: non-conventional faces and freshly-scouted models from streets or Calcio Fiorentino teams gave a genuine touch to the streetwearish tailoring that sets the London-based designer apart.
Martine Rose took over Florence’s Mercato Nuovo for an fall-winter 2023/24 collection that merged "Italy and London together"
“I am interested in a certain everydayness and ordinariness; this is why I am drawn to men from all walks of life and not professional models for my shows,” stated Martine Rose.
Martine Rose autumn-winter 2023/24 at Pitti Uomo, Florence
Special guest at Pitti Immagine Uomo 103, Rose masterfully combined stereotypical features of the Italian peninsula, such as the cinematic genre of spaghetti western referenced in the fringes, the Bolognese new wave in the soundtrack and even Tuscany’s centennial care for prestige materials. All those aspects were interpreted with a British taste and led to a universal language that, although referencing Florentine codes, didn’t fall into cliché.
Martine Rose said she began preparations for her show as guest designer at Pitti Uomo by thinking: "How can I do what I do in London, in Florence?"
Giulia Piceni
Arts Curating undergraduate student, Firenze