DosViolines
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source: nytimes.com
House Proud
By JOSH PATNER
Published: October 16, 2005
Rome was made glorious by hand. The Pantheon records the ancient meeting of mind and muscle; churches burst with hand-carved ornament; each iron curlicued gate is more graceful than the last. Even today, gelato is sculptured rather than scooped. But if Rome were a handmade fur coat, the label would read Fendi. No other house can lay such a claim. Even the great Valentino, whose atelier is at the foot of the Spanish Steps, is lionized for his French chic rather than for the brazen mix of lust and invention that is Rome. But not so at Fendi, where the city's magic and madness come together in every handmade stitch.
This year, Fendi celebrated its 80th anniversary with the opening of a grand new headquarters, which returns its famed atelier from Milan to the center of Rome, where Edoardo and Adele Fendi founded their small labratorio of artisan-made leathers and furs. Designed by Peter Marino, the former 19th-century family home now houses sleek boutiques, lavish salons for entertaining clients and a terrace with 360-degree views of rooftops, cupolas and hills.
The renovation is rich with both the craftsmanship and brash innovation that makes Fendi's limited-edition bags and featherweight furs such favorites of Sophia Loren, Catherine Deneuve and Sofia Coppola. Intricate ceilings have been restored to yesterday's splendor, while travertine marble curtains are a contemporary take on Baroque audacity.
But as fashion moves from the hype of mega-brands to the whisper of more intimate handmade details, what makes the Palazzo Fendi truly timely - and Roman - is the pride of place given to its artisan workshops. The atelier is at the building's heart, where cutting tables seem to float on a glass floor suspended in a central atrium. Forty craftsman, some of whom have worked at Fendi for that many years, are on call to make anything from airplane seat covers in the finest leather to crocodile place mats. A sable-and-chinchilla coat can be yours after three fittings and $175,000.
Roman extravagance, no doubt. But nothing compared to bumping into Sophia Loren in the dressing room.
[font=Arial, Helvetica, San Serif][size=-1]Jason Schmidt for The New York Times[/size][/font]
[font=Arial, Helvetica, San Serif][size=-1]A modern chandelier was designed for this room on the 19th-century palazzo's third floor.
[/size][/font]
[font=Arial, Helvetica, San Serif][size=-1]Jason Schmidt for The New York Times[/size][/font]
[font=Arial, Helvetica, San Serif][size=-1]"Spire," a sculpture by Anish Kapoor, graces the third-floor foyer.[/size][/font]
[font=Arial, Helvetica, San Serif][size=-1]Jason Schmidt for The New York Times[/size][/font]
[font=Arial, Helvetica, San Serif][size=-1]HOUSE LOYALISTS, all in Fendi, from left: Isabella Borromeo, who is married to an Italian oil magnate, in a black evening dress and fox bolero. Elena Riem, the soprano, wears a mink jacket over a burgundy dress. Lucia Odescalchi, a jewelry designer, wears an evening dress and a chinchilla jacket. Claudia Zanella, an actress who appeared in "Quo Vadis, Baby," in a pearl evening dress and wool-and-goat-hair coat. Jacaranda Caracciolo Falck, a journalist married to a prince, in a bronze leather-and-sable trench coat.[/size][/font]
[font=Arial, Helvetica, San Serif][size=-1]Jason Schmidt for The New York Times[/size][/font]
[font=Arial, Helvetica, San Serif][size=-1]A staircase at the Fendi palazzo.[/size][/font]
