Gianfranco Ferré within the lens

Gianfranco Ferré dentro l’obiettivo is an open-access book published by Forte di Bard Editore to accompany the exhibition of the same name, held at the Forte di Bard in the Aosta Valley from December 6, 2024 to March 9, 2025. The catalogue is edited by Rita Airaghi, Paola Bertola and Federica Vacca.

The Forte di Bard – with its “Cantine”, the long gallery and six exhibition rooms – hosts a project conceived to introduce the public to the heritage preserved in the Historical Archive of the Gianfranco Ferré Research Centre at the Politecnico di Milano. It is an unprecedented initiative dedicated to one of the greatest interpreters of Italian fashion, marking the eightieth anniversary of his birth.

At the heart of the narrative is the archive’s photographic section, which comprises more than 90 original works never previously exhibited. The show presents images by Gian Paolo Barbieri, Guy Bourdin, Michel Comte, Patrick Demarchelier, Peter Lindbergh, Steven Meisel, Bettina Rheims and Herb Ritts – eight masters of fashion photography who collaborated with Ferré on iconic campaigns illustrating his collections from the late 1970s to the early 2000s.

The volume includes written contributions by Paola Bertola, Stefano Bucci, Angelo Flaccavento, Greta Rizzi, Jeffrey Schnapp, Ilaria Trame, Federica Vacca, Angelica Vandi, Giulia Zanichelli and Catia Zucchetti.