Fendi’s Peekaboo Flaunts Familial Ties
Did you ever think it was possible that a bag could speak volumes — of innovation and interpretation — and at the same time define womanhood?
We all have women in our lives who define womanhood for us with their compassion and grace. However, did we ever think that a bag speaking volumes of innovation and interpretation would define womanhood?
Fendi’s Peekaboo bag has established itself as an embodiment of Roman craftsmanship and a celebration of womanhood. Designed by Silvia Venturini Fendi, the Peekaboo bag first made an appearance on the Women’s Spring/Summer 2009 catwalk, complementing Karl Lagerfeld’s ready-to- wear collection.
With its two lines — Peekaboo ISeeU and Peekaboo Mini — and a focus on both playfulness and aesthetic appeal, the Peekaboo bag is designed to be both geometric and curvilinear, minimalist and clean.
Speaking about the Peekaboo bag, Silvia Venturini Fendi says, “It was the moment to set things straight with a new classic. I wanted to evoke the beauty of a vintage bag with a lock, but for the first time make it about the movement of the bag.”
Whether scaled up or down, worn in the hand, on the shoulder or across the body, the Peekaboo continues to be an essential on the runway for the Fendi Women’s ready-to-wear collections. Not just that, the bag stands out as an ideal demonstration of architectural details and deep familial connection. Through its heritage quality as a timeless favourite, the bag has grown as an icon of the matriarchal family for Silvia Venturini Fendi, bringing her together with her daughters Delfina Delettrez Fendi and Leonetta Luciano Fendi.
The same is exemplified in the #MeAndMyPeekaboo campaign as Peekaboo bags are handed down from generation to generation by Fendi women, who enjoy exchanging and sharing them in a game of moods and personality traits to match their favourite bags.
Continuing its legacy of acknowledging emotional ties, the 2024 Peekaboo campaign, which launched globally in April, highlights the emotional bond and familial relationship defined by the Peekaboo bag as wonderfully personified by Kate and Lila Grace Moss. The charm of their mother-daughter bond is beautifully captured by photographer Craig McDean.
“IT WAS THE MOMENT TO SET THINGS STRAIGHT WITH A NEW CLASSIC. I WANTED TO EVOKE THE BEAUTY OF A VINTAGE BAG WITH A LOCK, BUT FOR THE FIRST TIME MAKE IT ABOUT THE MOVEMENT OF THE BAG.”
It also celebrates the warm friendship between the maison and Kim Jones, Fendi’s artistic director, which developed after his debut couture collection for them, which featured runway appearances of real mothers and daughters who were selected as icons of the matriarchal strength that has long defined the Fendi brand. The Peekaboo in the photo displays Fendi’s most well-known materials and identifiable artistic excellence, including its Selleria (Italian for “saddle”) stitching, according to Silvia Venturini Fendi.
It’s fascinating how a bag, which gets its name from the children’s game — “Peekaboo, I see you!” — has become a hallmark of defining empowered individuals today.
As Silvia Venturini Fendi says, “One’s bag is full of secrets, and so the idea is that the Peekaboo is a bag that can be worn open. I think that carrying a Peekaboo says something about a very strong, powerful and empowered person who is not afraid to hide. It has its two compartments — one you can keep close to you and closed, and the other you can choose to reveal something of yourself to the world.”
The 2024 Peekaboo campaign, therefore, becomes an important celebration of a bag that speaks abundance — that of Fendi’s legacy of honouring womanhood and artistic excellence.
