Vescovo and the ‘new sincerity’
by 
The emerging fashion brand Vescovo by Antonio Pondini between tradition, streetwear, and sustainability
Starting from the nineties, a strong sense of disorientation has begun to settle into the new generation’s spirit. Today, the debate on this well-known feeling is more heated than ever: just think of the current pandemic situation, economic and environmental crises, ideological struggles, the daily commitment to the creation of new and correct narratives of the bodies. We live in the middle of a turbulent and kaleidoscopic present, in which our identities are constantly changing; in the rejection of rigid forms and structures of meaning, closed in themselves, what we are questioning is exactly the socio-cultural relations that have been handed down to us by previous generations. From this individual and collective sense of unease and the need for a real reconstruction of a concept of community emerges the most bright, forward-looking creative proposals.
“Having a great interest in the world of fashion, after studying Sustainability, Innovation & Entrepreneurship, in 2019 I started looking for a way to combine my passion with my technical skills. This is how Vescovo was born. I currently work with four colleagues, and the synergy that coexists between us pushes me to define us a real collective”
– Antonio Pondini, founder and designer of the Italian Brand Vescovo.
Vescovo is an independent genderless brand born from the idea of Antonio Pondini, designer, in collaboration with Francesca Parasecoli, Lorenzo Matteucci, Martina Fabbri and Pietro Mercaldo. The project makes its entrance in the fashion world in 2020, declaring with a real manifesto its belonging to a cultural imagination in which the beauty of encountering, exchanging, dialoguing, and a concept of ‘new sincerity’, are all considered the best means to respond to some critical issues of contemporary society, such as urban alienation and rebellion against the ordinary. “The concept of ‘new sincerity’ comes from the postmodern thinking of the 80s; I find it can explain and represent the character of the brand. Vescovo wants to go beyond the prevailing trends and shape an increasingly wide and diverse community. The concepts of exchange and dialogue will always be present in our work”.
These thoughts translate into collections of clothes that want to combine the Italian tailoring tradition to the streetwear style for a new type of design: simple, minimal, regardless of trends. Also, production and processing methods are as sensitive as possible to the issue of sustainability. “Within our project, a small team works on Blockchain, on this technology that guarantees a clear legibility of our entire supply chain”, says Pondini. In July 2020 Vescovo received the title of innovative start-up from the Italian Economic Development Ministry for the design of a platform that outlines the effective sustainability of brands in the stages of development, production, and distribution.
With the creation of the Capsule Fall/Winter 2020 Vescovo presents itslef placing at the centre three themes of strong interest for the brand: the comparison with craftsmanship and tradition, in particular Italian knitwear, the brand connection with the concept of ‘newfound sincerity’ which takes shape through the figure of Charly (a flea-bitten white horse), which is sewn on the sweaters and vests of the winter genderless wardrobe, the aim of a sustainable fashion, thanks to the use of fabrics certified GOTS (Global Organic Textile Standard) and precious fabrics recovery.
However, it is with the Spring/Summer 2021 collection that the philosophy, the line of communication and the aesthetics that distinguish the brand emerge and make it known for its innovative spirit, as well as for its skills in terms of tradition. Gathering the influences of the glam icons of the postmodern era – characters such as David Bowie, David Byrne and George Michael are openly cited – dresses and shirts with overfit appear, playing on classic fabrics and recalling the traditional tailoring; garments with large pockets and collars, soft, round, created in a scale of pastel colors that include salmon, beige, pink and blue.
Pondini says: “The idea that guided and sustained us was to avoid contrasting elements that could cause a feeling of alienation in the observer and this is the reason why all the items were built following abundant lines. We want everyone who wears one of our clothes to feel free and approachable to others. In my opinion, it can be easily understood by the choice of colors: there are no dark shades, only serene, natural, and ‘sincere’ colors. We spent many hours of work selecting the right ones”.
The research on outerwear varies from classic fabrics, such as night blue wool and cotton blend, to technical fabrics, in which the brand wanted to handle again the contrast between innovation and tradition, between real and digital. Thinking about a phrase used by the team to describe the collection, i.e. ‘digital is part of the journey’, Pondini explains: “It refers to the fact that digital has marked a point of no return and that we must become aware of it when we reflect on the link between nature and our well-being, learning not to reject digital but to live with its presence in a sincere, sustainable way. The figure of Jon Rafman, and his art based on the emotional, social and existential impact of digital, is a constant reference for us and our work”.
In the images created by Lorenzo Lazzati & Francesco Cibati for the campaign, ‘my cakes, your boyband, our horse friend’, not the clothes themselves but the relationship that clothes entertain with people’s bodies is at the center. They are enjoying moments of pure and rare conviviality. The fabrics of the jackets and trousers wrap the lines of the body without tightening it, leaving it free to move and breathe inside them. The will to connote these items evoking precise identities are extinguished: it is not useful to know if what we see and like is labeled as ‘woman’ or ‘man’. We understand there are no reasons why we should not wear it, that we take part in the concept of ‘everyone’ designed by Vescovo. The conviviality and truth moments in which we are immersed bind with a very thin red thread, the relationship between the inside and the outside.
They have to do with a concept of familiarity with the ‘other’ created by Vescovo’s proposal of a ‘carefree’ performability of our bodies, that does not take into account the canons that have oxidized in the common opinion. “The theme of communication is fundamental to us. We are born as a brand that wants to encourage people to communicate. In our campaigns, there are never lonely people. We prefer groups that emphasize a sense of union. From the importance we give to naturalness comes the metaphorical figure of these values, Charly the horse. It is fundamental to communicate our desire of a mental-emotive connection between people”, explains Pondini.
The target that Pondini set itself through an active dialogue with the team members is to create a concept of freedom that, from the production of clothes, gently penetrates the life of the wearer, to build harmonies and similarities with others and no more connotations or differences.