Chromatic Vocabulary: the color design research according to Gianfranco Ferré

The study of color in the fashion design field has been much debated. From being a source of inspiration for designers, the use of color acquired an evident relevance as an element capable of defining the perceptive variations and intrinsic meanings established in the dialogic relationship between the material and its cultural dimension. Consequently, it becomes a communicative and visual vehicle of great impact, defining personal and social identities and conveying messages that address today to a larger audience. In its relationship with matter, we can notice that color takes on a stronger semantic connotation. It is a linguistic element that, particularly in fashion, contributes to the overall narrative of creation that finds the codes of its language in the identity of the individual but also in the socio-cultural context in which it is immersed. Fashion and cultural studies have now shown that if fashion is an expression of the self, color is actually a tool for constructing a personal statement and expressing it. Therefore, color - as an expressive code and bearer of shared socio-cultural values - strongly influences the value, design and identity construction of fashion itself. One fashion designer who has always distinguished himself for his rigorous and complex creative process in the use of color was Gianfranco Ferré. His teaching and design method was expressed through the contamination of three variables– color, shape and matter– declined in a plurality of models and formats that express desire, dream and luxury, without losing any connection with the real and material world. For Ferré, the use of color plays a primary role, in realizing unique and irreproducible combinations of form and substance, for conveying precise feelings and emotions, enhancing the body of the wearer. For this reason, Ferré considers the choice of colors and their shades an “intentional” act born at the same time as the idea of the dress itself and that guarantees coherence and identity among seasons and collections. Due to the uniqueness of his creative process, which represents still nowadays a multifaceted material of study, this paper aims to analyze and investigate the role of color in Gianfranco Ferré’s method and how it became effectively part of his lexicon. Case studies, practical examples and lectures held by the designer will show the relevance of the color and its articulation in his production, from the influence of his sources of inspiration to his iconic “white shirt” whose color justifies the existence itself of the shirt as a universal piece where tradition and innovation meet.