Ma Yansong makes first foray into fashion design with futuristic Fendi accessories

At Fendi's autumn winter 24 menswear show in Milan, the fashion house unveiled sneakers and handbags designed by MAD Architects founder Ma Yansong as an "extension of the experience of architecture and the city".

Yansong's debut excursion into fashion design saw the architect develop a range of accessories defined by the same sinuous lines as his buildings.

His take on Fendi's classic Peekaboo bag features dramatic slashes across the front, inlaid with pieces of varnished aluminium that peek out through the gaps. Aluminium was also used to form the bag's double-curved handle, designed to fit neatly into the palm of a hand.

Matching slip-on trainers feature a curvaceous injection-moulded sole, accented by glossy air bubbles and eyestays.

"It's my first time designing shoes and bags," Yansong told Dezeen. "I'm always interested in designing something closer to the people."

"That's also my understanding of architecture. I think it's always about how people use the space, the feel of the space and about their emotions."

Created under the creative direction of Silvia Venturini Fendi – Fendi's artistic director of accessories and menswear – both products are available in either a monochrome black colourway or in metallic grey with bright yellow detailing.

Although new to fashion, Yansong has long experimented with designing smaller-scale objects, whether reimagining Dior's Medallion chair or releasing a range of idiosyncratic homeware pieces from rugs to fish tanks.

"Maybe in the future, I want to design more furniture or more clothes," Yansong said. "Maybe automobiles. Really, everything around our lives that needs design."

"I think those are extensions of the experience of architecture and the city. So maybe the designers should be more multi-disciplinary, working more based on human experience not just in the traditional categories that divide our profession."

The collaboration is the latest in a line of "progressive partnerships" from Fendi that hope to "align the worlds of fashion and architecture".

Just last year, Japanese architect Kengo Kuma created a collection of accessories for the brand from tree bark and washi paper, while the late Zaha Hadid created a many-layered version of the Peekaboo bag as part of a charity auction in 2014.

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