Guce Me Up!

Foil Me's Co-owner and Creative Director, Emily Ciardiello Emily Ciardiello tells us where shedraws his inspiration from.

So my inspo is fashion and in particular, I love Gucci. Cliché I know, but not for the reasons you may think…I am inspired by the fact that the brand has existed for close to 100 years and it is still so relevant and prevalent today. The brand is always challenging the norm, speaking to its consumers through the design and colours of their clothing and accessories. It was founded by Guccio Gucci in Florence, Tuscany, in 1921, and it’s true workmanship and quality back then has withstood the test of time, where the brand hasn’t succumbed to the lure of using cheaper materials to make more money which I believe destroys the very foundation of a premium and luxury brand. Being a luxury brand owner myself, I admire that immensely!

I also admire the fact that the brand continues to keep their ‘storytelling’ or ‘message’ in every item they release through maintaining the right people to continue the brand; even though Guccio has long left this world, the brand has managed to maintain the crux of Gucci by hiring people who do justice for the brand and carry on the brand’s enigmatic and artistic culture; this is seen in the creative director Alessandro Michele where he says of their November runway show in Milan:

“Biopolitics,” Michele called it, quoting French philosopher Michel Foucault. It’s the power over life and body. “The power that legitimizes some existences, confining others. A power that imposes conducts and paths, that prescribes thresholds of normality, classifying and curbing identity, and chaining it to what is preconceived."

I love that every item created has a meaning behind it and that it tells a story, making the consumer feel something other than 'I'm wearing a t-shirt or a pair of sunglasses.' It gives meaning and justifies why they are a brand that time and time again lasts and survives any downfall in economy.

So, in a nutshell, my inspo is brands/businesses that express themselves, tell a story, emulate not imitate and try to help/change society for good.