Fendi celebrated its 80th anniversary with a Roman-theme Halloween bash hosted by designers
Karl Lagerfeld and
Silvia Fendi (granddaughter of the fashion house’s founders), and C.E.O.
Michael Burke at the former
Cunard Shipping building in the financial district.
Paige Pedersen, Fendi’s director of communications for North America, worked with event designer
David Monn to create a lavish fete filled with costumed celebrities, Italian-inspired decor, and a bevy of circus-inspired performers.
In a nod to the fashion house’s original location in Rome, Monn made over the downtown space—a landmarked abandoned building with lofty 85-foot-high frescoed ceilings as well as marble columns and archways—as a Roman palazzo with tented lounges, custom-built terraces, and a fountain. Potted lemon, lime, and orange trees were scattered throughout the venue, as well as 40-foot Italian cypress trees. The end result was a less scary and theme-y Halloween event that still retained a fun vibe for those who had dressed up for the occasion. (Burke’s Caesar outfit and designer
Zac Posen’s zombie ringmaster look were a sampling of the night’s creative costumes.)
Forgoing the season’s usual ghosts and goblins,
Party Productions NYC provided more refined entertainment: two stilt walkers dressed as Asian princesses, another in a grasshopper costume performing for arriving guests outside the venue, and a pyrotechnic performer,
Flambeaux. DJs
Mark Ronson,
Q-Tip, and
Jeremy Healy spun music, and singer
Angela McCluskey sang “Happy Birthday” to Fendi when the clock struck twelve.
Creative Edge Parties supplied a selection of northern Italian Caesar-style nibbles including seedless kalamata olives with basil; rosemary focaccia bread served in baskets; assorted cheese and aged Italian salami; and antipasti on small swings hanging from tree branches. At midnight guests feasted on bowls of penne with black truffles.
—
Anna Sekula
Photos: Andrew H. Walker/Getty
Images (stilt walkers), courtesy of David E. Monn (fountain, lounge)
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