Dundas exits Roberto Cavalli a second time

After only a year and a half and three seasons under his belt, Peter Dundas, the creative director of Roberto Cavalli, is leaving his role at the eponymous Italian fashion house. The last collection by Dundas, who was appointed in March 2015, was presented at Milan Fashion Week last month.

Dundas appeared a good fit for the brand, and is known for both his creative flair and eclectic personality. A designer guided by his creative instinct and spontaneity, his relationship with the world of celebrity was well-matched to a red carpet brand with a molto sexy outlook as its DNA.

In an interview with Vogue, Dundas once said: "Whatever I'm into at the moment is usually what becomes the collection. Last year I was super into diving, and the whole collection that season became about aquatic life. The year before was my first collection for Pucci, and I was just starting the job and working in his Renaissance Palazzo, where Pucci is headquartered, so that inspired me."

Norwegian-born Dundas had been with Cavalli before, as the company's Chief Designer from 2002 to 2005. He then moved to Ungaro, Pucci, and French furrier Revillon, before returning to Cavalli last March.

At the time, Dundas stated "This is a homecoming for me. It is an honour for me to continue to evolve the wonderful world of Roberto Cavalli and I am very excited by the possibilities and potential of this unique brand. I cannot wait to get started."

Dundas' first show for Cavalli received mixed reviews, after which he didn't quite establish the mark he had hoped to. Perhaps there was friction with the company's owners, the Italian private equity firm Clepsydra.

Sarah Mower of Vogue Runway said of his debut: "Dundas still needs to find that difficult balance between accessibility and designer leadership." Fashion critic Tim Blanks echoed the sentiment: "The fact that his first steps were surprisingly less sure-footed than expected only highlighted how complicated that process is going to be."

Dundas is the latest designer to leave a well-known fashion house

The exit Dundas is just the latest in a series of musical chairs that has marked the fashion industry in the last period. Among the most egregious exits of late, there was Raf Simons at Dior, Maria Grazia Chiuri at Valentino, Justin O'Shea from Brioni, Arthur Arbesser from Iceberg and Alessandra Facchinetti from Tod's.

Commenting on the announcement, Gian Giacomo Ferraris, CEO of the brand, said: "In the name of Roberto Cavalli and its shareholders, I thank Peter for his contribution to the brand wishing him the best for his future. In this period of transition and transformation, the design team of the brand will continue to design the collections; the appointment of the new creative director will be announced in due course."

Photo credit: Peter Dundas Cavalli; source: Roberto Cavalli online