The Ladybug is a White Hunter: finding Africa in Milan

A few weeks ago I visited a great exhibit at FM Contemporary Art Center in Milan. I didn’t know about this very interesting space until I saw the flier of this event called “The White Hunter. African memories and representations” and I decided to have a look on a Saturday afternoon.

The exhibit started end of March during the Milan Art Week and it presented more than 150 works of contemporary artists (including my favorite African photographers Seydou Keita and Malick Sidibé) as well as pieces from anonymous traditional artists. The main topic is Africa just seen by different eyes and represented in many different ways. Maybe this is the reason why I couldn’t love it more!

The black building hosting the exhibit and the calm space outside was perfect also for a short outfit shooting!

It was indeed the perfect occasion to wear my Madame Ilary African wax turban that I added to a very simple outfit: old boyfriend jeans from Topshop, frilled white shirt from Alexa Chung Archive Collection for M&S, simple Benetton black trench coat and Nike 4 & Other Stories white sneakers.

I also wore my new folk clutch bought at Archivio Vintage event a couple of days before!

The Ladybug visits the Fondazione Prada in Milan

Before going on holiday, during one of those Milanese hottest July weekends I decided to get some good air-conditioning with my friend Ilaria in one of the most interesting new spaces in town, the Fondazione Prada new permanent venue in Milan. This institution, started in the ‘90s is completely dedicated to contemporary art and culture and inaugurated its new venue in Milan in May 2015.

We had enough time to visit all the permanent and temporary exhibitions and we were totally in a awe. The same architectural space is incredible: it combines seven existing buildings with three new structures (Podium, Cinema and Torre) and it is the result of the transformation of a distillery dating back to the 1910’s.

The Haunted House hosts two of the most interesting permanent installations conceived by Robert Gober and two works by Louise Bourgeois. Processo Grottesco is another permanent installation by Thomas Demand.

Other temporary projects were: Serial Classic, focused on classical sculpture; the amazing An Introduction, a collection of modern art that apparently led to the opening of the Fondazione in the Galleria Sud until the Deposito area; Trittico defined as a “dynamic display strategy” in the Cisterna area and In Part, one of my favorite collections curated by Nicholas Cullinan and situated in the Galleria Nord.

A separate mention has to be done for the most incredible area of the Fondazione Prada, the Bar Luce, accessible also from outside, designed by film director Wes Anderson and recreating the atmosphere of a typical Milanese café of the 50’s/60’s with patterned décor, pastel colors and a lovely pink juke-box!

We took some pictures around so that you can see what it looks like and visit it for real as the place is really worth a visit!

I wore a denim dungaree by & Other Stories, Dixie striped shirt, Miu Miu golden flats, Peter Pilotto for Target round frames and a canvas bag from The Vintage Festival in Padua.