Francesco Rossi

2025

Multi-dimensionality is a lively matter for Francesco Risso, the Milan-based designer whose radical, emotionally charged approach to fashion has cemented him as one of the most original voices of his generation. Risso’s creative ingenuity and fearless worldview have positioned him as a visionary whose influence reaches far beyond fashion.

Born in a household with a wandering lifestyle, Francesco trained at Polimoda, FIT, and Central Saint Martins, grounding his practice in technical rigor and artistic experimentation. Following early roles at Anna Molinari, Alessandro Dell’Acqua, and Malo, he then joined Prada where he worked closely with Miuccia Prada and Patrizio Bertelli for the next decade, developing a rigorous approach to narrative and craft.

Appointed Creative Director of Marni in 2016, Risso reshaped the house into a living system of art and clothing, merging performance, poetry, and play. Over the years Risso constructed a new vocabulary for the house, where garments acted as emotional artifacts, expanding the definition of what fashion can hold.

Post Marni, Risso has spent the past months travelling the world, researching and developing new design systems and expanding his practice to collaboration with a global network of artists and artisans. The body of this intensive research, blurring the boundaries of craft, art, and fashion, will be translated into a new design and research studio currently under construction in Milan. The new space, to be revealed publicly in 2026, will function as the nucleus of Risso’s evolving practice, and serve as a conduit between Risso and global fashion and cultural institutions via research, development and design.