Ermenegildo Zegna has released a Fall 2020 ad campaign that is an extension of the brand’s Fall 2019 and Spring 2020 campaigns, based on the theme #WhatMakesAMan. In an unusual move for fashion marketing, the campaign has only two images showing a model wearing clothing from the brand’s most recent collections.
The remaining photos in the ad campaign are focused on Oasi Zegna, the company’s forest preserve that surrounds the brand’s wool mill in Trivero, in the Biella Province of the Piedmont Region of Northern Italy. As part of the menswear brand’s celebration of their 110th anniversary, Zegna has used their previous ad campaign concept “What Makes A Man?” to pose questions about mankind’s legacy for future generations, specifically as it relates to global ecosystems and sustainability.
This is not the first time the brand has centered their marketing around ideas of sustainability; for Zegna’s Spring 2021 fashion show the models walked through a portion of Oasi Zegna and into the wool mill, and for their previous Fall 2020 fashion show the brand teamed up with Brooklyn-based artist Anne Patterson to create a set made from strips of leftover Zegna textiles in shades of green and blue that hung from the ceiling of a decrepit former foundry. The new Fall 2020 campaign celebrates the brand’s anniversary and founder Ermenegildo Zegna, who planted more than 500,000 trees starting in the 1930s. His reforestation project transformed the landscape surrounding the Zegna wool mill into a 100 km2 nature preserve that is today known as Oasi Zegna.
In an effort to carry forward the Zegna founder’s commitment to reforestation, the new ad campaign features photos from the forest preserve along with images of hand-crafted wooden hearts that can be purchased as a contribution towards reforestation efforts. The hearts are expertly crafted from Italian trees, which have fallen naturally or were cut down for security reasons, and a portion of the proceeds will be contributed to Fondazione Zegna which is committed to conserving the mountains and woodlands of Oasi Zegna. Income from the hearts will be dedicated to enriching the forest with a diverse ecosystem of plants including Magnolia Macrophylla, Magnolia Yulan, Magnolia Vulcan, Ginko Biloba, Ironwood, Beech, Cornus Kousa, Rhododendron Cunnigham White, Hydrangea quercifolia, Hydrangea arborescens. The cedar sculptures are made in collaboration with Riva, a family-owned Italian manufacturer and sculptor founded in 1920; made of cedar, the resin produces a natural balsamic scent.
In addition to the imagery of wooden hearts, Ermenegildo Zegna’s new campaign features photography of Oasi Zegna’s lush environments as an invitation for people to contribute to the maintenance of the Zegna Forest, and become an active supporter of Oasi Zegna. Fans can also plan visits and vacations at the forest preserve, which has it’s own website www.oasizegna.com.
