Walter Chiapponi’s Departure from Blumarine After One Season

Walter Chiapponi has departed from Blumarine after just one season as creative director. A successor has not yet been named.

The brand did not indicate any reason for the departure, but Chiapponi had been open about his struggles throughout 2023, which he referred to as a “horrible year” in an Instagram post in January due to the sudden deaths of his nephew, his friend Davide Renne (shortly after his appointment as creative director of Moschino), and his dog.

“My gratitude for this experience goes first and foremost to Marco Marchi [sole director of Eccellenze Italiane Holding, Blumarine‘s parent company] who made it possible, but also to all those without whom I would not have been able to express myself as I did. I especially refer to people whom I have loved and who are no longer with us, but who continue to instill strong emotions in me, inspiring my feelings and my path,” Chiapponi said in a statement today.

“Now I want to focus on new initiatives and projects with a social and humanitarian scope before returning at a later date, at the right time, to the runway.”

Chiapponi’s appointment at Blumarine in November took some by surprise, signaling a departure from the Y2K aesthetic the brand had embraced under Nicola Brognano, who revived the brand after his appointment in 2019. Chiapponi was previously the creative director of the understated luxury brand Tod’s; he resigned in July 2023 and was succeeded by Matteo Tamburini.

As expected, Chiapponi’s first and only collection for Blumarine was vastly different from Brognano’s butterfly motifs and Y2K silhouettes: for Fall/Winter 2024, the brand shifted towards romantic brocades, sheer dresses, and floral prints on silk dresses and pajamas. Some viewers felt the collection lacked direction, but the sentiment was that we had yet to see what Chiapponi could fully achieve with the brand.

“This experience will remain unique in a special moment in Blumarine’s history,” says Marchi. “I am grateful to Walter Chiapponi for pouring so much of himself into this collection. It has been an extraordinary adventure. I wish Walter all the best for the continuation of his journey.”