Vain Stylist issue no. 2°- ENG

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ACADEMY OF FA S H I O N A N D COSTUMEROME Education and real opportunities.

VITUSSI Artistic bags.

STYLIST VS HAIRSTYLIST A successful fashion show.

New MAURIZIO GALANTE

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Indice

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Indice ACADEMY OF COSTUME AND FASHION OF ROME P.11 ROMA: EDUCATION AND REAL OPPORTUNITIES P.24 FROM COUNTRY GIRL TO FASHION STYLIST P.27 SCHOOL OF EMBROIDERY P.28

SARAH JESSICA PARKER P.38

MAURIZIO GALANTE P.41 STYLIST VS HAIRSTYLIST P.52 VITUSSI P.59

www.harim.it

By Angelica Grittani Selena Magni

ACCADEMY OF COSTUME AND FASHION OF ROME

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ince 50 years the Academy of Costume and Fashion of Rome introduces young talents to the world of fashion and costume. They witness a cultural as well as instructive experience and they carry on the tradition of style of their school.

The Headmaster Lupo Lanzara has directed the academy for four years and he explains us how the formation offer, unique, can lead to great chances in the fashion market.

The creativity, passion and reliability of the pupils of the school can make these young guys great professionals.

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HEADMASTER ACADEMY OF FASHION AND COSTUMELUPO LANZARA

This year is the 50th anniversary of the Academy of Fashion and Costume of Rome. What does it mean to have reached this point?

What does it mean for you to direct this school?

Having reached this point is a great honour and a great responsibility. The Academy is an historical institute that gives an instruction of the highest level, always up-to-date, and that’s why we’ve been active for 50 years. The Academy was established by my grandmother, Rosana Pistolese, in 1964 and then carried on by my mother Fiamma Lanzara, who is the current president. I became part of the working team four years ago and I represent the third generation, together with my brother Furio Francini, General Manager. As I said, it’s a responsibility but also a great satisfaction to make this school shine bright thanks to our passion in supporting our pupils to enter the world of work.

The Academy has always been a point of reference for the professionals of the sector and the young talents who want an environment that could help them to deepen their knowledge. What are the elements that characterize the Academy? What is its position internationally speaking?

It’s our fusion of Fashion and Costume. We want to give our pupils an instruction that is not only practical but also theoretical, personal and cultural. The student is the centre and we all work around him to make him develop skills, to make him mature and ready to work. Out intention is to support them in their search of their identity through experimentation, so that any of them can interpret the styles of the firm they will work for or create their own collection, basing on their personal experience and the competence they acquired here in the Academy. We offer a technical and planning experience but a cultural one, too, not only because of our formation offer but also because the Academy is in Rome, a centre of culture, a city of art and history.

We think this is the right environment to develop creativity and get closer to any form of art. Our goal is not just to impart skills in design and drawing, but also to teach how to think.

PH Gerardo Gaetani

The education of the Academy is very interesting, since it’s the only one in Italy that proposes a course that unites Fashion and Costume. How is it possible to blend this two subjects?

We have a large education offer, we start from the Bachelor Degree of I level in Fashion and Costume, 180 cfa (Three years, DM July 2011 n.94) to Master Degree of I level (60 Cf), to Professional Specialising Courses in collaboration with important firm of the Fashion System, then Intensive Courses week-end formula and Summer School.

The Academic Degree in Fashion and Costume is the only one in Italy in which the education is on the same level both for Fashion and Costume in the same course. Costume is part of fashion and of the culture of society, you can divide them. Subjects like History of Costume, History of Theatre and History of Fashion are hard for our pupils but when they finish the school, they have a double competence that they can take advantage of. The founder of the Academy, Rosana Pistolese, explained this dualism very well: “We have always considered fashion as costume, as culture and humanity, and this humanity of costume explains how every civilization expresses their style through symbols and through art, which is an expression of the human being. Costume is all the fashions that change, is the very human evolution, is sensibility and standard of every age and every culture.”

Costume is not to be seen as the history of ancient times, but as history of a society that characterizes the present trends. It’s necessary to recognize the different styles and past habits, but most important is to underline the characteristics of the society we live in, through art, expression of culture, studying contemporary art as well as ancient art.

What is your advice to you talents who want to make a career in fashion?

I’d suggest them to have a serious and respectful attitude, to be curious and willing to test themselves, to know themselves and to never give up. Determination is essential. It’s a very competitive world and they had better get used to it from the beginning and strengthen their will.

What is the relationship between teachers and pupils of the Academy?

Our teachers are not just teachers sitting at their desk, they are professionals who work together with the pupils, sharing experience through a constant exchange of opinions. It’s an active instruction.

What are the advantages for those who attend the Academy of Fashion and Costume?

The Fashion system is full of opportunities but it’s very competitive, as it is, it’s up to the pupils to have that something, that X-factor.

We give them the chance to become part of a group, of a “family” with a goal: prepare them to the world of work.

PUBLIC RELATIONSHIP DIRECTOR OF ACADEMY OF FASHION AND COSTUMEOLIVIER DI GIANNI What is the activity of the press agency of the Academy?

Our work is divided in two main activities; one is the relationship with the media, journals, television channels, magazines and bloggers to share the news and important events and to handle the external collaborations with famous names in the Fashion System. In addition to this, there’s the Pr work, that we need during events and contests to maintain the contacts with the press and to get new ones. The second activity of the press agency is the promotional communication that we do on the social networks Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, Google + and Tumblr.

Thanks to these socials we can give to the school and the pupils the chance to get known and express themselves and their work.

Moreover, there’s Google advertising, billboards outdoors and our participation the exhibitions. As I am in charge for public relationships, one of my tasks is also to increase brand awareness and enhance the school name and reputation.

How do you get to your prospective pupils? Do you do any sort of talent-scouting?

Our pupils know about our school thanks to the various communication channels. There’s the possibility to come to Open Days, in which we invite them to attend workshops and to try the life in Academy. We also do orientation in schools.

At the end of the school year we organise model shows, called Talents, where a jury of professionals will select the best projects. In the last edition there were jurors of high fame and talent scouts, publishers and creative directors for fashion maisons, as well as the Italian National Chamber of Fashion, to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Academy.

This event is a test for our pupils and during this event some fashion houses ask to interesting designers to do a job interview.

We have the pupils take part in various contests, national as well as international; for them this means having a first approach to the world of work, answers and critical judgement of their style.

In this way they can come closer to the market and the customer’s desires, aware of these might like or not.

PH Gerardo Gaetani

What are the most important events you usually attend?

Mittelmo Fashion Award, presided by Matteo Marzotto, the London Graduate Fashion Week (a real fashion week for fashion schools), Riccione Moda Italia, for fur coats there’s Remix, organised by the International Fur Federation, the International Talent Support, a large contest with sponsors as Diesel, these are all contests that offer a chance to become known. In 2013 the Queen of Malaysia invited a delegation of Italian stylists during AltaRoma, among which Renato Balestra, and she chose our school to represent Rome during a Charity event for children with cancer. It was an honour for us to take part in it and to participate to the fund raisings.

What is your relationship to the other Fashion Schools?

Our main competitors are IED Fashion, the Koefia, Marangoni and Naba.

We respect other schools’ work, aware that we have different styles as well as a personal education offer.

Are there many foreign students at the Academy?

Surely the charm of a city like Rome is strong. During the 90s much of the appeal to our city of fashion and art had gone lost, while today there’s a new interest for Rome as a city to study in our Academy has the most complete education. We are getting more and more internationalised, taking part to meetings in emergent countries like Dubai, Russia or China, to make our instruction known abroad. It can be important for foreign students to deal with Italian mentality, our culture and our working methods, it can be helpful for their cultural and professional development. To Italian pupils, instead, meeting new culture is gives a good impulse to improve and confront in a creative way. Academic life is very interactive, there are lessons, workshops, lectures and meetings with former pupils, actors, costumers and stylists that come to share their experience.

What qualities you need to have to attend this school?

Spirit for sacrifice, because this school and this world are very demanding and there no moment in which the mind is not at work, it should always be stimulated and active, ready to create. Motivation is essential, a real passion can be the push to give one’s all and never give up or get tired. Curiosity, passion and inspiration are important qualities to understand if the potential pupils are suitable for the Academy.

That’s the reason why, at the beginning of the academic year, we do a selection of the applications through motivational interviews to evaluate the real motivation of these young talents.

C O S T U M E

F A S H I O N

ROMA: EDUCATION AND REAL OPPORTUNITIES

By Cristina Giannini

Selena Magni

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alent and passion are the roots of any project but a good instruction is also required to dive into the world of work with the best bases. Many institutes and academies have been established to help young people to enter the world of fashion and to develop their character and increase their creativity, as well as to give them better opportunities.

Among the various schools, there’s Accademia di Moda e Costume in Rome. Established in 1964, this institute starts from the concept of costume, giving it a cultural and social prominence and taking inspiration from art, so to make it possible to express style through symbolic features. This school has taught many pupils for years and gives them good opportunities and a good start in the world of work.

During the fashion week AltaRoma 2014/2015, the Academy set up in its building an exhibition to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the famous journalist Irene Brin. This event had the purpose of celebrating this personality, very important for the Italian fashion in the post-war years, regarded by the school as a model of life and an example to follow.

The event is linked to the “Irene Brin Prize”, founded in 1969 by the Academy. This prize is meant for young stylists who distinguished themselves for their creativity, bringing innovations in the world of fashion. During the roman fashion week, fifteen students of the Academy presented their capsule collections. Matteo Marzotto, as a judge, awarded the prize to the former pupil Roberta Andreetti, who now works as a designer for Gucci’s shoes.

This school has been able to combine instruction, education and selection, providing the students with motivation to give their all and to fulfil their dreams. Instruction is essential to get good opportunities, it should never be underestimated.

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FROM COUNTRY GIRL TO FASHION STYLIST: a proper education is the key to the world of fashion.

By Enza Volpe

Selena Magni

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ashion has always been attractive for many young people that want to take up a career in this world. It may seem a frivolous, ephemeral world but it actually requires a lot of creativity, knowledge and passion. To undertake the career of the stylist, a proper education is required. Every famous stylist has created their own empire

thanks to a professional instruction. Today, there are prestigious fashion schools all over the world, like the Parsons New School For Design in New York, well known for the famous TV show “Project Runways”, or the Central Saint Martins in London, where Alexaner McQueen took his degree, and, to name an Italian one, the Marangoni Institute in Milan. These academies are meant to provide the students with specific knowledge like drawing, design of models, history of costume, history of art and research of new trends. There are also professional high schools specialised in fashion that allow a first approach to these studies. So many are the young girls and boys that try to enter this world, and many of them succeed thanks to the good instruction they get from these schools.

Gaia Torchia is a good example. She’s a 20-year-old girl from central Italy, nome de plume“Audrey”. She graduated as a Fashion Designer, Graphic Designer and Fashion and Clothing Specialist and she started her blog, “The Black Blog of Style”, in July 2010. In little time she gained notoriety thanks to the rock, grunge and alternative taste of her outfits and to the weird colours she proposed, becoming, with her pink-dyed hair, a sort of modern Lady Bar-

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bie. As her popularity increased, she had several collaborations and was invited to exclusive

parties like that of Luisa Via Roma. She also started to write articles as a fashion journalist, working with productions like Fashion Stylist. She then decided to deepen her knowledge

and attended a fashion styling course at Marangoni Institute, studying subjects like Fashion Writing, Graphic Design and Styling Analysis. Gaia is an extrovert, particular girl; she

tried to start a trend matching different patterns like stripes, flowers or animal patterns all in one outfit, as you can see in the pictures.

K O U Z M I N A

K A T E R I N A

Interview to Katerina Kouzmina SCHOOL OF EMBROIDERY

By Cristina Giannini

Mattia Vismara

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ince 2006 the Italian embroidery school is the best in its kind and its teaching.

What’s the main purpose of this school?

The mission is to spread this art, which is also a job and a very large but unknown sector, especially to the youth. People think that embroidery, for example, is just cross-stitch or classic embroidery and it’s just a work for old people, but in haute couture I discovered that many young people are interested in it and want to promote it, not only as a hobby but also establishing new companies on their own.

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How important is it to direct this school and what value does it have?

It’s of utmost importance: I study embroideries from morning until night, and it’s my life.

Is there a relationship between Italy and embroidery discipline?

Of course the largest haute couture companies are from Italy or France, even if recently Lebanese designers are increasing. However, Italy is still important, and in fact my students would like to remain in its market, in Made in Italy, which is a strong point of Italy.

Could you give an advice to young people who want to get closer to this world?

Suggestions are very personal, but the first thing I tell to my students is: decide who you are and what you want; this will be useful for you in order to understand where you want to work. There are a lot of working sector and they need to understand where they want to act during their life. People come to the school with confused ideas, without any practical skills and I try to explain the working panorama, telling them about Italian and foreign companies, branches, and sectors for haute couture professionals.

Do people need particular qualities to enter this courses?

No, everyone can enter this profession. Groups are mixed: there are people who can draw very well and who can’t even sew a button. Courses are made for everybody and for every age, all you need is to practice and have passion. People who obtain this skills have to go on to the next step: what do you want to do in your life?

How long do courses last? What kind of relationship is there between students and teachers?

We always try to create different and strictly practical courses. There are branches in the market which are not taken by any company yet.

We try to add in our studies plan practical subjects which are missing in Italian universities and that can give more professional chances to the students and that can be updates for designers, or everything that might help those who start from the very beginning. Of course we choose young teachers with a long experience and a lot of passion to involve students, elder craftsmen might not be up-to-date or may not be used to handing down their passion because of a lack of emotion.

What is a typical lesson like?

Lessons are always practical, with a theoretic part that helps the student understand the general idea of what we do. It’s the base for a micro business plan. Technics can be learnt by tutorials on the internet, but involvement must be given face-to-face by a passionate person.

What kind of relationship is there between schools and firms?

We have the standards like companies do: we teach our students according to what firms ask for. Many enterprises propose on-the-field apprenticeships to our students and, since we offer niche courses, we have many requests. I suggest what kind of apprenticeship is best and I propose students, who I know to be suitable for a specific firm. I give names of the companies, I tell students how to get dressed and what kind of books to take with them, they find a job, and even young people may start up companies. We give post-graduation expert advice, too.

Do you organize contests or events?

We did them in the past, but nowadays we receive a lot of requests to take part to many exhibitions: professional, and hobbies-related, as well as commercial ones. We have a lot of opportunities, so I ask students if they want take part, in groups too. In fact it’s important for the pupils to know each-other in order to create something together.

School and relationship with other countries.

How do you relate yourselves to the international panorama?

Right now I’m stable in Italy, but there are foreign students, too, especially Russian, but here in Italy there is already a lot work to do.

How do you promote your school?

Journalists often find us because we have a good visibility on Google. In the past we took part to many hobby and embroidery exhibitions and this made us well-known. People can find us also in many websites, but what satisfies us the most is word of mouth: this confirms that our courses are much appreciated.

How long do courses last?

They’re generally short, the courses last 4 consecutive days during the weekend, so that working people can join, too, taking two days off before the weekend.

What do you think about the rebirth of embroidery in the Made in Italy?

Despite the crisis, we need to adapt to our times. I mean, in the world of haute couture designers can create low priced clothes that are impressive anyways. So I teach that it is possible to create expensive clothes but also techniques that can lower costs. For example, instead of a reparation atelier, you can create a prêt-à-porter atelier where you can make low budget clothes, embroidering it or modifying it, in order to make it a couture item.

You are in charge of the marketing, what do you do?

We have courses for people who want to embroider at home for passion or hobby, as well as courses for people who want to join the haute couture world and who want to start up companies or who come from closed firms, maybe just graduated.

Of course I want teach everything I know, besides embroidery. The enterprise is a service for the client, I don’t work for myself, but for my client.

Of course the students come first. I analyze what they want from the course and from life in general, in order to know what to give them. Students who want to work in fashion world come here at the age of 22-23, with a lot of expectations. Universities are either too much theoretical or they force too much on creativity. So, during our courses, we try to give some realistic notions: it is very important to know the market.

What are the future plans for the school?

I would like to establish courses for handicapped people, and for kids from 13 years of age who want to learn a hobby or a work. Of course it will be studied in depth to give some hope to interested people.

In Italy there are a lot of sectors where handicapped can find job, but I don’t think this goes for fashion and embroidery.

MAKE UP MAKE UP MAKE U

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THE ANDROGYNOUS MAKE-UP AND THE NATURAL LOOK

By Serena Secco

Selena Magni

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he idea of Beauty is in constant evolution. This can be clearly seen in fashion- in every new collection we are proposed new trends, new colours, new cuts and lengths. If we just look back to the 80s or the 90s, we are surprised by those “rugs” that we used to consider as clothes for a “grand soirée”. Runways show us new styles to follow, for clothes as well as for the Make-up.

The recent trends feature two main kinds of Make-up, the first is the Androgynous Makeup. This word derives from Greek and describes an appearance that has both male and female characteristics. This Make-up is very suitable for models with strong features, especially with marked chin and cheekbones. Anyways, the adjective “androgynous” has lost part of its initial meaning and it has gradually come to describe a natural Make-up, that usually enhances one detail in the model’s face and makes it more pronounced. After correcting the skin with a full coverage foundation, it marks one feature in the face- it can be super glossy eyebrows or brightly coloured lips or cheekbones marked by a dark contouring.

Chanel has used this Make-up for the Fall/ Winter shows in Paris, choosing very fair complexions and thick eyebrows. Very different was the choice of Alexander Wang and Marc Jacobs, who preferred hiding the eyebrows and underlining the eyes with a graphic style inspired to the 60s.

The British actress Tilda Swinton owes much of her success to her androgynous features; it’s not by chance that she played the protagonist in “Orlando”, the 1992 movie that made her famous and that tells the story of an androgyne who is born a male and through various centuries becomes a woman. She played some other similar roles, like the Archangel Gabriel in “Constantine”. Recently she’s been chosen as a testimonial for “Rouge Passion”, the latest campaign by Pomellato, famous jewellery brand from Milan. The campaign stars her in a very basic Make-up, with a glowing skin and bright red lips.

The other trend that is getting more and more popular in fashion shows is the “Natural” look.

In this case the purpose is to enhance natural beauty; the faces are bright with a very natural and soft contouring, even the eyes look like they have no Make-up at all. It’s just an illusion, the models have many products on- primers, concealers and foundation for a perfect skin, illuminating products for a fresh and bright face and usually some natural shades on the eyes, perfectly blended to give intensity to the look.

A fashion brand that has always used this Make-up for their testimonials is Dior. The beautiful Jennyfer Lawrence, protagonist of Miss Dior Collection, was photographed with a natural Make-up that at the same time gave her a mature look.

Talking about testimonials, Versace chose Lady Gaga for the new Spring/ Summer collection and from the previews on the internet we can see her beautiful tanned and glowing face with eyebrows almost invisible and coral red lips.

During a more recent event, the Oscar ceremony 2014, among the stars on the red carpet, Anne Hathaway stroke the attention with her very natural Make-up that underlined her sweet eyes- a brave choice for a ceremony in which everyone usually shows off.

Lately, everything seems to suggest that, as far as Make-up is concerned, “Less is More” is the best choice.

Sarah Jessica Parker sica Parke

SARAH JESSICA PARKER AN ICON FOR WOMEN

By Veronica Giomini

Mattia Vismara

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hoes have always been a strong sensuality element and have contributed to enhance strong women’s characteristics, such as elegance, femininity and seduction. If shoes had at first a more functional than aesthetic purpose, in some time they started to influence the way of walking, moving and women’s posture, becoming decisive and inevitably fascinating.

One of the most inspiriting icon for girls and women has been Carrie Bradshaw, interpreted by Sarah Jessica Parker. She had thousands of shoes and dresses and she made a lot of women dreaming, with her favorite shoe brand “Manolo Blahnik”, advertised in “Sex and the City” TV series. The main character of this series, together with her three friends, is madly in love with this designer. These friends have an obsession especially for the classic “Blue Pumps” with a jewel on the tip, which have become a symbol of the brand. Sarah Jessica Parker has also launched her personal shoes collection, inspired to her character and to the most famous group of friends in the world of series and it has been designed together with George Malkemus, President of Manolo Blahnik America, who supported the actress with this new project. Her collection is composed by infinite models: vintage sandals, heels with ankle-belts, platform espadrilles, peep toe and flat sandals, so many models to make women feel like actual princesses.

These beautiful shoes are already available exclusively by Nordstrom and on the online shop, and they have a special characteristic: every model has a real name.

People who love the TV series will not be surprised to know that the pointed model is called Carrie.

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MAURIZIO GALANTE The beauty, between dream and reality

By Olivier Di Gianni

Selena Magni

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rom my very first meeting with Maurizio Galante, I could feel a tangible devotion to the search for beauty and dream, in an harmonic balance between things and people.

My first question, as it is, concerns the dualism of his formation.

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ODG: “Maurizio, you attended the Academy of Costume and Art and at the same time the college of Architecture in Rome. How did you balance the two subjects?”

MG: The Academy was my dream while studying Architecture represented the real world. I’ve always tried to give a sense to whatever I do, making it my mission to search for a balance. It’s a specific choice of mine to always mix, and so I mix Fashion, Design, Architecture and Jewellery.

ODG: “As far as fashion is concerned, you only create Haute Couture and never pret-à-porter. Is this an artistic whim of yours or a specific choice?”

MG: I make Haute Couture because it’s the perfect blend between handicraft and reality. Handicraft is the essence of a population’s culture and history, of their memory, and a society worth of this name is based on memory. I’m convinced that who has memory has more power!

ODG: “Talking about fashion, you don’t model every season but only once a year, why?”

MG: It’s true! It’s an important part of my life and besides fashion, I am also fond of Design and Architecture because they are my personal language. Right now I am working on some products for the Furniture Exhibition, the preparation of a restaurant- not as a cook (both laugh), without leaving out the Haute Couture!

ODG: “In your last model show in 2013 you had three of your muses model, Simonetta Gianfelici, Violetta Sanchez and Amalia Vairelli. Why them and not models more in vogue?”

MG: All the three of them are friends, accomplished women and some are also mothers, besides having been top models and muses for Yves Saint Laurent, like Violetta and Amalia. They represent a different theatrical world, and they have a playful approach. My fashion is, after all, a world of emotions, respect for the body and for the people who wear clothes, all in a soft design.

ODG: “During your career you worked with theatre, too. I think about the costumes you designed for Madama Butterfly at the Opera Theatre in Rome.

What is, in your opinion, the difference between Fashion and Costume?”

MG: The work of a costume designer is easier than that of the Couturier, because in theatre the characters are well defined. In Fashion I interpret what I see with my eyes and my feelings and there’s no script. I live in the moment and I firmly believe that clothes are “item of conversation”.

ODG: “You have lived in Paris for several years, now. Why?” MG: It is the city where I have lived longer, after Rome and Milan. I live and work well here, it’s easy and exciting at the same time, here I can express myself and tell about myself. Rome was my starting point.

ODG: “by the way, France has officially recognised you and you were awarded with the title of “Chevalier de l’Ordre des Art et des Lettres” in 2009. How does it feel to receive such an honour?”

MG: I felt very honoured and I was happy also because it is not a military title.

ODG: “When you came to the Academy some months ago, you showed me a collection of stamps that you designed. Has this something to do with your ideas about creative fusion?”

MG: French Postal Service has always turned to stylists, from Yves Saint Laurent to Hermes and in 2011 they asked me and I accepted. My stamps are made to be interactive with the public that buys them, they can be coloured or carved, the can be customized.

ODG: “What do you think about fashion in the present time?”

MG: I believe it’s a great moment for Fashion, I would say it’s of great generosity. The juxtaposition that exists between basic clothes and Haute de gamme enhances the creative impulse, especially in Paris where I think there are the best model shows- colourful and joyful.

Fashion, in the end, represents the moment. It should not look too much to the past, nor too much ahead. It should be right in time. If it looked too much ahead, it would be visionary and it wouldn’t have sense, too much to the past and it would be Costume or nostalgic revival without any innovation.

ODG: “To conclude, Fashion or Design?”

MG: Fashion is magical but Design is stronger than Fashion. I always say that we spend more time with the chair we’re sitting on while working than with the person we love, so, we need to choose carefully…

ODG: “Thank you!”

PH GAUTHIER GALLET

PH. ARNO BANI

PH FRANCESCO SCAVULLO

STUDIO STREET LIFE.COM designer fashion & house Fashion Collections Planning Man / Woman Shoes – Bags - Belts Samples manufacture Production Technical Assistance House Design Furnishing Complements Prototypes

Studio Street Life.com studiostreetlife.com@gmail.com

TREND OF FASHION TV TALENTS

By Gaia Bregalanti

Mattia Vismara

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ehind every big and little brand lies a great job.

To stand out in the fashion industry, you have to aim to quality, to what identifies a brand, a fantastic bag or an odd pair of shoes: the finishing and the care of every little detail.

For a fashion designer it is important to have a large knowledge about the making of an item. There are a lot of fashion schools that teach all of this and, once you get your degree, help young people to emerge on the market. However, a couple of years since, talent shows have become more and more popular in television- from singing to dancing, to fashion. These realities test the skills of every competitor, from the countless auditions to the hard challenges which one has to take, trying to arrive at the end of the show, hoping to win.

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The most famous fashion reality was born in the United Stats in 2004 and it’s called “Project Runway”.

The jury is composed by the beautiful Heidi Klum, who is the presenter as well, the designer Michael Kors, former Elle magazine and Marie Claire director Nina Garcia and a guest judge who changes every week. Competitors vie among each other to create the best dresses following an assigned theme and time limits, having at their disposal a precise budget and chosen materials. Tim Gunn is their mentor, he assists and supervises them during their work in the laboratory. The elimination happens gradually until they get to the final challenge, called “3/4 designer”, which consists in the release of a complete collection of clothes, which will be shown at the prestigious fashion week that takes place at Bryant Park in New York every year. Some of the winners so far are Seth Aaron Henderson (7th season), Irina Shabayeva (6th season), Christian Siriano (4th season) and Chloe Dao (2nd edition).

The Italian version of the show is called “Project Runway Italia” and has just come in 2014.

It began on 26th February and, like the American version, the jury is composed by Eva Herzigova, Tommaso Trussardi and Alberta Ferretti. The selected designers are 12 with 12 models and are followed by mentor lldo Damiano.

Another new made in Italy fashion talent show is “Fashion Style”, presented by Chiara Francini and the judges Silvia Toffanin, Alessia Marcuzzi, Cesare Cunaccia and a person who changes every episode. This talent is produced by Colorado Film for 2013/2014 television season on La5 and consists of sixteen competitors: four female models, four fashion designers, four make-up artists and four hair stylists. Selected among thousands, they are divided in four teams, each of them is formed by a member of every category. The team which will be able to convince the judges of their works wins a contract with an important fashion brand. The first edition of Fashion Style was won by Magenta team, composed by Michele Chiocciolini, Chiara Bonacina, Olga Shuldyk and Lucia Orazi, with the establishment of their brand “Volking”.

To all the fashion designers who are determined and want to take part in the hard world of fashion, the opportunity of fashion tv talent is huge, both to improve themselves and to emerge. Be prepared with determination and fight your way through those infinite auditions: the lucky ones might be you.

synergy and collaborations towards a mutual goal: a successful fashion show

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By Federica Cimetti

Mattia Vismara

PH FEDERICA CIMETTI

STYLIST VS HAIRSTYLIS

STYLIST VS HAIRSTYLIST

PH FEDERICA CIMETTI

D

uring a fashion show, the novice spectator very often believes that only the clothes on the catwalk are to be judged, but experts and members of the staff know very well that behind the scene of a fashion show there is more. Every collection has its own precise mood, which is expressed by clothes and by every single detail which composes every look: in this sense, hairstyles play an essential role in the expression of the concept, so does the make-up.

Never underestimate details.

The relationship between designer and hairstylist is important: the complicity and the professionalism of these two characters in fact has the power to make a fashion show unforgettable or to change it into a fail. The main director in the backstage is always the designer and it’s him who decides the outfits and the exits, but, like in every winning team, he knows he has a partner that is as important as he is. The professional hairstylist is expert in understanding the designer’s needs, so he can translate them in hairstyle: once he viewed the collection, he has to be able to offer his own interpretation with different styles to complete the looks on the runway.

During Milano Moda Donna fashion shows in February, the examples of this synergy were various and winning: “Team Missoni created rings in acrylic for jewels collection, so I came up with the idea of using them as elements of the hairstyle” – says Eugene Souleiman, Wella Professionals Global Creative Director- “Then I created very strong and shiny pony-tails, made with acrylic hair, and once attached to the rings, they were fixed over the pony-tail of natural hair like a real accessory. For Ports 1961 I thought, on the other side, to create a hairstyle which reflected the feeling I had when I first saw the collection: the clothes were so perfect that they gave me the impression of having in front of my eyes an illustration, like they were drawn on paper. That’s why I created a clean hairstyle, without any hair out of place, but it had to be catchy and rigorous as well.”

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VITUSSI the new concept of timeless bags

By Rossella Scalzo

Selena Magni

I

nterview with Vito Petrotta Reyes, creative mind of Sicilian origins, who redefined the concept of “bag� in his collection, making it an expression of art to look and admire. Grown up in a creative environment, Vito Petrotta Reyes creates bags that can be considered as works of art, changing the common use of objects into a new functionality. Besides the precious and beautiful fabrics, every bag has a greater value thanks to the meaning, hidden or revealed, that it carries. The art of reinventing and transforming have always characterised his creations.

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Frame in chromed brass, silver soldered to.

Plum-colored lining.

Craftsmanship. Dimensions: 12 x 14 x 19.4

Who’s behind the brand Vitussi and what are the origins of this brand?

Behind the brand Vitussi there’s Vito Petrotta Reyes and a team of dreamers of good will. My family has dealt with artistic activities for several generations: a great-great grandfather was a photographer, a greatgrandfather worked with a fashion house in Paris, a grandmother with French origins worked in a ceramic atelier in Palermo and my mother was painter and teacher of pictorial decoration. For the first part of my life I did activities of a completely different kind: I studied as a diplomat, I was a director of a school for the diplomatic career and then I was general manager of some companies. But, a certain point, you must come to terms with yourself and I decided to give room to my creative ambitions, to the surprise of my relatives. The first step in a different direction had been to open the “Sultanato di Abali” a bed and breakfast, a fantastic place of games, art and fairy tales. From there I took inspiration to create the clothing collection “dal Sultano”, made with furnishings fabrics. With the leftovers I did the first bags and with some leather I did some strange clothes, with a funny mixture of materials.

How much did the environment you grew up in influence you?

With the art of modelling clay of your grandmother Linda Chauffourier and the art of paiting of your mother Fulvia Reyes.

Growing up in a creative environment where everything is possible, where there are white canvases to colour, walls on which you can draw, was surely important. Creativity is part of me. You can pretend that it’s not for some time, but in the end, with a bit of courage, you have to give vent to your ambitions and give it room. When I came back to Palermo after a long time away, I felt a great emotion seeing the old atelier with the furnaces, the wheels and all the tools left there unused, all the balls of clay piled up and never completed, covering with dust. I had always thought that one day I would have come back to those places and seeing them still moves me. Instead of moulding clay, I decided to do something more suitable for me.

Frame color gunmetal-plated brass, soldered to silver.

Craftsmanship.

Lining color fuchsia. Dimensions: 12 x 12 x 19.4

Leather horse decorated green on a beige background.

Brass frame plated in gold, silver soldered to.

Fuchsia lining.

Two handle faucets in brass golden, with plexiglass tube filled with water.

Craftsmanship.

Dimensions: 14 x 14 x 22.6

Even though you had a completely different education, do you think that it had any influence on what you are doing now?

My university studies didn’t influence my creative self at all, but they have been very important as far as the marketing is concerned. Vitussi is a small company that needs relations, contacts and organisation to grow up and my studies have helped me very much in this. On the other hand, my school education was very important. As a child, I attended a school that I would define as “illuminated”, directed by a great teacher, professor Greco, that took inspiration from Rousseau’s philosophy and who granted great freedom the children, we had the ceramic lesson and the gardening lesson and a small zoo, a place to learn art and a school magazine for which anyone could write.

After many years abroad you decided to come back to Palermo in the family’s atelier. Why did you choose to do so?

I decided to come back to Palermo because it’s my city and besides all its contradictions, I feel comfortable here. The atelier, which is in the house I grew up in, is a fantastic place, with the lions’ cage, Barbablù’s room, the room for your thoughts, the windows with moustaches drawn with rain and many trees. My house is in Mondello, a maritime village near the city, and it was calling me and waiting for me. Choosing to come back was not easy, especially because it meant leaving interesting works in Milan. But at a certain point in life one must understand what is really important, whether to make a career in the official system or search for peace, joy and tranquillity in creating an object.

Before creating your collection of bags, you made the collection “Sultanato di Abali”, turning marvellous fabrics in coats, jackets and waistcoats. Why did you choose to change and create bags instead?

The coats that we created had a style inspired to “The Thousand and One Nights” and “King Louis XIV court”, they were purposely ironic and luxurious, excessive in colours and models, they were very expensive and difficult to wear. It was a nice experience, with no particular purpose, just for the fun of it, a provocation. This collection is now destined to a different market, in Paris or London, where the items will be hired out for special occasions.

Frame in chromed brass, silver soldered to.

Plum-colored lining. Craftsmanship.

Dimensions: 12 x 14 x 19.4

How would you define your bags and for what kind of woman are they meant?

I would they are bags to admire as well as to carry, created for a woman that doesn’t fear to be admired, with a strong character. They are meant for a niche market, due to the choice of materials, the handmade creation and the fusion between precious metals, leathers and prickly pears. Vitussi’s bags are meant for a woman who wants to add a touch of colour to her clothing, who loves black, grey and winter colours but who also wants to carry with her an elegant and ironic ray of light.

Where did you take the idea of making bags blending different and sometimes opposing materials like brass and leather or the prickly pear pattern?

The idea came out from a research and a game, from the ideas that come in an atelier where all is possible and where there are sheets of paper, pencils, scissors, compasses and then metal, leather, fabrics and thousands of other things that have apparently no relation with each other. It originates from my travels around the world.

I wanted to do something totally new for the current market. These bags are made of brass and gold or silver and leather for the external part. We are making interesting researches on materials, especially on the prickly pear from which we take a wooden fiber that is very resistant and that gives support to the bag. These net is first cleaned, then dried, layered and lacquered with a long work and in the end it becomes a beautiful backing that can be dyed.

With your collection of “timeless” bags you redefined the concept of bag as a simple thing to carry objects. Which bags do best represent this idea?

I agree to the search for something new as evolution but I don’t agree to the idea of making a “new collection” at all costs, I think it implies that it will become old-fashioned in little time. We’ve been forced in a system in which everything becomes old in a very short time and they made us believe this is right. It’s not, and for this reason I described the Vitussi collection as “timeless”, so that the items, unique or almost unique, could be sided by other creations without losing their importance.

As it was for the coats, in which the fabric changed its destination and turned into something different, in the same way the bag becomes an object to look at or to carry along, even though it’s useful to carry things. From this idea the most artistic part of the collection was born. A bag, as a basic model, is topped by a handle that can be the expression of creativity.

In the series dedicated to water, especially in the item “Infinite cycle”, the water cycle is represented in the round Plexiglas handle, in which water ideally loops and which has a small tap at the base that should never be closed or the movement will cease.

In the model “Water or Champagne?” there are two taps plated in gold, arranged like rampant horses and united by a Plexiglas tube where there are water and champagne to give the idea of life, games and irony. In these series, taps lose their primary use and become something else. In fact, I’ve always asked myself whether this is their real use and only in later times were they used to make water flow. This idea of a use different from the common one is the same in the “Iron Bag”, in which an electric iron is used as handle. This item is dedicated to the fashion housewife, a new Cinderella who is tired of doing the ironing and ready to change the fate of her electric iron turning it into something else, a part of a bag to be used in special occasions, in which it will be admired as a work of art.

In the items you create there is a perfect harmony between handicraft and modernity. How important are they for you?

Handicraft in Italy runs the risk of disappearing, overwhelmed by the competition of countries where labour is extremely cheap. Only when we succeed in giving life to an idea that comes from our history, from our traditions, or when we find new uses to traditional elements, like it is for the prickly pears of Sicily, or when handicraft meets design and creation, it’s then that we are winning again.

How important are your Sicilian origins? Do you think that Sicily has the means to give more value to the Made in Italy?

Vitussi’s bags are like me, they are born from the fusion of different materials, apparently incompatible. My father Gianni, who descends from the Albanian exiles who came to Sicily by the end of the fifteenth century, my mother Fulvia, daughter of Frenchmen with a Spanish surname, come to Sicily for love. I’d say that Sicily, like Vitussi’s bags, represents a meeting place of different elements that are in harmony, and this is very important in the process of creation. Sicily doesn’t have means but it has many creative minds and skilful hands that add a sunbeam to the Mde in Italy.

Would you explain me how did you get the idea of using the wooden fibre of prickly pears’ leaves in the creating of your bags?

As it often happens, it was a casual idea. On the sunny beaches of Cefalù I had often admired the beauty of the prickly pear’s net that looked like a cobweb once dried by the sun. But all the credit goes to Vittorio, a brilliant craftsman that showed me lamps made with that fibre. From there, the step was easy and with some small improvements, it became perfect for bags.

In the collection “Unattainable Luxury” you equipped the bag with barbed wire. Can you explain why?

It’s a provocation that derives from the idea that luxury cannot be always attained. Money can buy everything but it’s not enough. There’s a part of sorrow that you have to endure. You can buy the bag, you can carry it but it will cost you pain and effort. Anyway, for those who like it, it is possible to enclose the barbed wire in Plexiglas, so that you can see the wire, maintaining the idea of pain and suffering without altering the irony of the item.

After the success you had at Super of Milan, where the collection “Treasure Chest” caight the interest of the press and the various professionals for its originality, what are your future plans?

My plans for the close future are concerned with the advertising for the brand Vitussi. We will be at the CosMit in Milan, the Furniture Expo and at the Premium in Berlin. We have had several invitations to exhibit the items in contexts that have nothing to do with fashion and this pleases us. We will display in an important art gallery in Paris and we’re working on an amusing project with a company that produces luxury taps. We need to work on the marketing, choosing the right shops where to propose out items but in the meantime we had a great achievement because we’ve been chosen by an important shop, whose name we will reveal in a little while.

Filly decorated and perforated leather fuchsia.

Brass frame natural untreated soldered to silver.

Fuchsia lining.

Handle with double brass faucet.

Craftsmanship. Dimensions: 12 x 12 x 19.4

THE ESSENTIAL IMPORTANCE OF EDUCATION. THE SCHOOLS AND THE PROFESSIONAL PATH OF THE STYLISTS, THAT BEGINS AT A YOUNG AGE AND NEVER ENDS. “Instruction and education are the most powerful weapons that can be used to change the world.”

Nelson Mandela

There’s no point in being talented and having a clear idea of what you want to create if you don’t power this with a proper instruction.

Thanks to education young stylists can refine their techniques and decide where to address their talent in order to be successful. Even in fashion, schools adapted to the new times and there are more masters and more courses. Although new talent shows have opened shorter roads to success, nothing will ever be more instructive than an Academy where young stylists study for years, learning from professionals and fashion lovers what the real essence of creating fashion is.

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