PARIS — Fresh off his celebrity-studded spring 2024 show at the Fondation Maeght art museum in the South of France, Simon Porte Jacquemus already has another architectural marvel in his sights for his next runway display.
The French designer who’s known for his sun-drenched Mediterranean aesthetic plans to celebrate the 15th anniversary of his brand with an intimate event on June 10 at Casa Malaparte, the modernist Italian villa set on a clifftop in Capri, WWD has learned.
The brand said it would be the first time the famed location hosts a fashion show.
Jacquemus chose it in tribute to one of his favorite movies, “Le Mépris” (“Contempt”) by Jean-Luc Godard, which features Brigitte Bardot sunbathing nude on the rooftop of the red, arrow-shaped building built by journalist, writer and diplomat Curzio Malaparte between 1938 and 1942.
The villa has fascinated designers including Karl Lagerfeld, who visited the site for five days in 1997 and took a series of Polaroids, which were subsequently published in book form by Steidl in 1998.
Bad Bunny and Simon Porte Jacquemus at the Met Gala.
Christopher Polk for WWD
Jacquemus featured one of Lagerfeld’s prints of Casa Malaparte on the inside of the suit jackets he and singer Bad Bunny wore to the 2023 Met Gala celebrating the Costume Institute’s “Karl Lagerfeld: A Line of Beauty” exhibition.
The striking villa has been the backdrop of campaigns including Saint Laurent’s spring 2018 film starring Kate Moss, and a 2019 Louis Vuitton perfume ad featuring Emma Stone. Vuitton also chose the location to unveil its high jewelry collection in 2015.
Known for cinematic runway displays in spectacular locations, including a lavender field and the Palace of Versailles, Jacquemus has an outsized presence on social media thanks to its founder’s engaging personality and eye-catching initiatives, such as last year’s viral video of cars shaped like Bambino handbags whizzing past the Paris Opera.
Surfing on its rapid growth in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, the brand signaled it was ready to vault into a bigger league with the opening in 2022 of its first-ever boutique on Avenue Montaigne, one of the world’s most exclusive shopping streets.
As part of its ongoing elevation strategy, Jacquemus is scouting for permanent locations in the U.S. and the Middle East, with plans to open several stores overseas by 2026. Its first boutique Stateside is due to open in New York City’s SoHo district in October, a spokeswoman confirmed.