A FASHIONABLE LIFE

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S

et at the end of a long drive flanked by centuries-old stone

pines twisting crookedly up to the heavens, I Casali del Pino,

the Fendi family’s country estate outside of Rome, evokes

a 19 th-century Italian landscape painting. Just six miles north-

west of the Colosseum, the property predates the Roman

Empire, and the family’s transformation of 430 acres into an

organic farm adds to that sense of longevity.

It’s here that Silvia Venturini Fendi spends weekends with

her sisters, Ilaria—who runs the farm’s operations—and Maria

Teresa, and all of their children. “For me, it’s really a way of

resetting from city life and working in fashion, which is very demanding,” Venturini

Fendi says with characteristic understatement. Encompassing a

terra-cotta farmhouse with pretty eau de Nil shutters, a dairy,

an agritourism hotel with 16 rooms, an organic restaurant, and

a flock of more than 1 , 000 sheep, I Casali del Pino isn’t pastoral

posturing. “We bought this property for our children because

we really believe the future will be about having a greener life,”

she continues. “Ilaria has been an environmental activist for many

years, and now we’re all learning to live in a simpler way.”

Venturini Fendi’s nine to five is far from simple. After nearly

three decades working at Fendi (she famously designed the iconic

Baguette bag back in 1997), she was named sole creative direc-

tor last year following the death of Karl Lagerfeld, who had

designed for the house for more than 50 years. The approach she

is taking to this new chapter is deeply rooted in her own heritage.

“I don’t have this idea of woman as goddess,” she says of her

spring collection, which features a mix of work jackets, trenches,

and quilted coats in pastels, tans, and ochers; and dresses in checked

prints and bright psychedelic florals. “My inspiration is much

more grounded. I want to talk to real women who work—like

the women in my own family.” Her mother, Anna, was one of

five sisters who inherited a small leather goods workshop and

together transformed it into a global luxury powerhouse. Along

with her commitment to real-life wardrobe solutions, Venturini

Fendi is adamant that her designs align with her sustainable ethos:

“Karl taught me that time is the best judge of creativity. I want

to make clothes that people wear throughout their lives.”

It’s the next generation of Fendi women, pictured here, who

most inspire her. “My daughters and nieces are all extremely

stylish as they’ve been raised to believe an aesthetic point of view

has real value,” Venturini Fendi says, smiling. “My older daughter,

Delfina [Delettrez Fendi], is a jewelry designer, while my youngest,

Leonetta [Luciano Fendi], is studying human migration at the

London School of Economics. My niece Nina [Pons Fendi] is

an actress, and Annabel [Frisch Fendi], my youngest niece, rides

horses beautifully.” Might this, then, be a preview of the fourth

gen of the family biz? “Like all the women in my family, what

they do will be their choice,” she replies.

Whatever the future holds, it’s clear that I Casali del Pino

will remain an anchor for the Fendis. “This place reassures me,”

Delettrez Fendi says. Adds Venturini Fendi: “It’s a lot of manual

work—opening up paths in the woods, following the river and

finding mysteries from the past. Every time I go back home on

Sunday night, I am destroyed but also so happy.” ■

Venturini Fendi

with her daughters

and nieces in the

terrace garden

The drawing

room in the

family home

The farm

utility vehicle

on which the

Fendi girls

learned to

drive, with

some of the

estate’s sheep

in the distance