The Iconoclasts 2014

During Milan Fashion Week, on February 2014, Prada presented a new chapter of The Iconoclasts, the series launched in 2009, with Edward Enninful’s original vision for Prada women’s and men’s Montenapoleone stores, inspired by the energy and original thought of the ‘Harlem Renaissance’.

An electric time of artistic explosion and cultural exchange for the African American community in the United States in the 1920s, the ‘Harlem Renaissance’ represented a new creative spirit. Stars such as Louis Armstrong, Billie Holiday, Josephine Baker and Ella Fitzgerald were born, and the air buzzed and fizzed with jazz and ideas.

Taking this spirit of creativity as his cue, Enninful’s Prada women’s store presents a cast of black and white mannequins dressed in Prada SS14 and archive looks – guests at an imagined 1920s club – complete with glittering art-deco bar, evoking the atmosphere of Harlem.

The men’s store hosts a cast of black and white mannequins dressed in Prada SS14 and archive pieces, set amongst game tables, 1920s food and cocktails, and the strains of a jazz blues trio. New fashion images shot by Emma Summerton and Enninful are part of the interior design in both stores, as big paintings.

“Miuccia Prada’s work always begins with a conversation. Drawing from this notion, I looked to the ‘Harlem Renaissance’ for the SS14 instalment of The Iconoclasts series. As the ‘Harlem Renaissance’ was a period of original thought – when creative minds inspired and embraced a new cultural identity – I felt that this was an appropriate narrative to incorporate into this season’s Prada collection”, explains Edward Enninful of the project.

On February 26th, 2014, Enninful’s vision for Prada’s new Saint Petersburg store was unveiled.