Maria Sole Ferragamo by Lundgren+Lindqvist — BP&O
Statement by Richard Baird
Maria Sole Ferragamo is a unique jewelry designer who uses recycled premium leather. Remains of the Italian fashion industry. She has a degree in architecture from Politecnico in Milan and another in jewelry design from Central Saint Martins in London. This interface of fashion and architecture can be seen in the entire collection of the designer and shaped the design of her visual identity by Lundgren + Lindqvist. This consists of a flexible logo, which is divided into two lines in a compact form, and a horizontally oriented version. A number of secondary school logos were designed for the former, including "So-Le Studio" and "Florence"/ Firenze ’and additional information from secondary school. The logos are woven into a visual tapestry that runs across and along the edges of boxes and cuts or frames images online.
The work undoubtedly channels the ultra-modern visual language of the Sans-Serif. Some called it "blandification", others see that they make the best of the strong fashion house names and play a subordinate role for the more evocative and narrative visual language of photo shoots and elaborately choreographed and staged catwalk shows. It is not surprising for brands with less presence and tradition to pursue similar approaches, a gesture of striving. Without the name, without the legacy, and without telling a sophisticated shoot or show, these brands have to work harder to get involved, to work on a secondary subtextual level that communicates some of their philosophy (positioning). This results from the background of the designer, the intersection of a fashionable and architectural educational background. This is evident in some forms of the designer's work – often referred to as portable architecture – and in the understanding of the material life cycle as an upcycler.
Lundgren + Lindqvist channel a highly fashionable visual language through the lens of the architect and make the topic of structure clear and clear through grid, repetition and modularity. The wrapping makes the reference quite clear, but pushes the familiar into the realm of architecture in order to give it the necessary difference and the necessary memorability. In addition, the hint of a continuous stream of writing flowing across surfaces in three-dimensional space, as an abbreviation for the designer’s exploration of the infinite possibilities of upcycling materials, feels like an elegant gesture that gives the Sans additional conceptual weight – Serif. This sans-serif font is neutral to an inexperienced eye, but the letter shape and the relationship between the letters support the concept alongside product photography and some other pointers such as layering and graphical interpretation of the architectural concept of volume and emptiness through positive and negative space online. Further work by Lundgren + Lindqvist on BP & O.
Design: Lundgren + Lindqvist. Opinion: Richard Baird. Fonts used: TBC.
If you liked this, you may also like:
