For her first Fendi Haute Couture show, Maria Grazia Chiuri celebrates the house's Roman heritage in the National Gallery of Modern and Contemporary Art.

There are places that transcend mere backdrops to become the protagonists of a story. By choosing the Galleria Nazionale d'Arte Moderna e Contemporanea, perched atop the Pincio Hill, <a href="https://www.lofficielsingapore.com/fashion/maria-grazia-chiuri-appointed-artistic-director-of-fendi-fashion-news-silvia-venturini">Maria Grazia Chiuri</a> situated her first Haute Couture collection for <a href="https://www.lofficielsingapore.com/fashion/bang-chan-va-huh-yunjin-gop-mat-trong-chien-dich-fendi-pre-collection-thudjong-20">Fendi</a> within a profoundly Roman landscape. It's a return to its roots for the house founded in 1925 in the Eternal City, which has, over the decades, consistently cultivated an intimate dialogue between fashion, heritage, and creativity.
This presentation of the Fall/Winter 2026 <a href="https://www.lofficielsingapore.com/fashion/haute-couture-fashion-week-fall-winter-2026-paris">Haute Couture</a> collection marks a turning point. It is the first designed by the Roman designer for Fendi and coincides with the house's simultaneous opening of an exhibition dedicated to its shared history with <a href="https://www.lofficielsingapore.com/fashion/penelope-cruz-fondest-memories-of-karl-lagerfeld-2023-met-gala-interview">Karl Lagerfeld</a>. This serves as a reminder of how the German couturier, who remained at the helm of Fendi's creative direction for over half a century, continues to be a foundational figure in its identity.
Rome has often provided Fendi with its most beautiful settings. In 2016, for the house's 90th anniversary, the Legends and Fairy Tales show transformed the Trevi Fountain into a magical theatre thanks to a transparent walkway that seemed to float on the water. Three years later, the Temple of Venus and Rome hosted Dawn of Romanity, a collection orchestrated by Silvia Venturini Fendi using the Karl Lagerfeld archives. The fifty-four looks paid homage to the designer's fifty-four years at the house, creating a dialogue between ancient marbles, the Vienna Secession, and couture craftsmanship.

Beyond the spectacular staging, these Roman events have always embodied Fendi's commitment to heritage. After financing the restoration of the Trevi Fountain in 2013, the house continued its patronage by supporting the work on the Temple of Venus, thus affirming a vision where the preservation of heritage dialogues with that of the arts and crafts.
For her entry into the world of Fendi couture, Maria Grazia Chiuri shifts this dialogue towards modern and contemporary art. At the heart of the National Gallery's collections, among works by Modigliani, Guttuso, Emilio Isgrò, Pino Pascali, and Cy Twombly, she composes a reflection on desire, the guiding thread of her collection. "Fashion never ceases to generate desire," summarises the designer, who also draws inspiration from Histoire d'eau (Water Story), the short film made in the late 1970s by Jacques de Bascher to accompany Karl Lagerfeld's first ready-to-wear collection at Fendi.
This cinematic reference infuses a silhouette of great lightness. Almost impalpable muslins, crisscrossed with black and white stripes, sit alongside kimono-inspired jackets and coats, tailored in velvet or grain de poudre fabric, to create a fluid elegance, free from all constraints. Even the most sculptural pieces forgo the corset, preferring to let the draping naturally define the volume.
The collection also celebrates the collective work of Fendi's ateliers, housed in the Palazzo della Civiltà Italiana. This collaboration fosters a couture where tradition and experimentation advance in tandem. Stripes seem held in place by a veil of tulle, while capes and coats are adorned with arabesques that transform into leaves, flowers, or feathers of leather and fabric. Through this debut show, Maria Grazia Chiuri reaffirms the singularity of a house that, for a century, has made Rome far more than its birthplace: an inexhaustible source of inspiration, where history, art, and artisanal excellence continue to write a resolutely contemporary language.

FENDI Couture Fall/Winter 2026

FENDI Couture Fall/Winter 2026-2027

Maria Grazia Chiuri Stages First Fendi Couture Show in Rome

L'OFFICIEL SINGAPORE — June-July 2026

L'OFFICIEL SINGAPORE — May 2026

L'OFFICIEL SINGAPORE — April 2026

L'OFFICIEL SINGAPORE — March 2026

L'OFFICIEL SINGAPORE — February 2026

L'OFFICIEL SINGAPORE — Dec 2025-Jan 2026

L'OFFICIEL SINGAPORE — November 2025

L’OFFICIEL SINGAPORE — October 2025

L’OFFICIEL SINGAPORE — September 2025

L’OFFICIEL SINGAPORE — August 2025

Maria Grazia Chiuri Stages First Fendi Couture Show in Rome

Tags

Related Articles

Fashion

Pierpaolo Piccioli Revives Essence of Balenciaga with First Couture Collection

Fashion

Jonathan Anderson's Dior Haute Couture Fall/Winter 2026 Blooms with Nature

Fashion

Haute Couture Week: Everything About the Upcoming Paris Shows

Recommended posts for you

Fashion

ITZY's YEJI Brings Playful Elegance to Roger Vivier's Pre-Fall 2026 Collection

Living

Inside Bottega Veneta’s ‘Weaving Matter And Memory’ at Bangkok Kunsthalle

Fashion

Maria Grazia Chiuri Stages First Fendi Couture Show in Rome

Fashion

Longchamp's Le Smart Bag Champions Timeless Craftsmanship in a Fast-Moving Fashion World

Fashion

Pierpaolo Piccioli Revives Essence of Balenciaga with First Couture Collection

Fashion

Jonathan Anderson's Dior Haute Couture Fall/Winter 2026 Blooms with Nature

Fashion

Interview: Chinese Actress Tian Xi Wei on Gucci, Pursuit of Jade, and What's Next

Fashion

Watch Dior's Haute Couture Fall/Winter 2026 Show Live From Paris Here