The Style Examiner recently came across the accessories label Mark/Giusti and was immediately seduced by its exquisite leather bags. The brand’s collection for Spring/Summer 2012 is called ‘La Dolce Vita’ and it intends to evoke the ‘Sweet Life’ atmosphere of Rome and the Amalfi Coast during the 1950s and 1960s, a period when the Italian hedonistic way of life and glamour influenced the world.
This collection, the third developed by Mark Farhat for Mark/Giusti since the label was launched in June 2010, is largely influenced by Federico Fellini’s 1960 film ‘La Dolce Vita’. Farhat has even indicated that the centrepiece of the collection, the Jet Set Cabin Bag, was inspired by the carefree and cosmopolitan attitude towards life as portrayed by the film’s leading actor Marcello Mastroianni.
As in Mark/Giusti’s previous collections, the subtle detailing and hand-drawn patterned linings of the beautifully crafted bags take us back in history to the Byzantine Empire where art and craftsmanship worked hand in hand. As such, beyond Fellini’s cinematic references, further inspiration for this collection was derived from mosaic decorations found in the Basilica di San Marco in Venice and is translated into the lining of each piece.

The ‘La Dolce Vita’ collection comprises a line of luggage, messenger bags, iPad covers, and other small leather accessories. The colour palette for the collection is dominated by neutral and yet elegant tones such as black, navy and white, that illustrate the Italian ‘Sweet Life’.
