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FENOMENO BLOGGER P.25
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BILL CUNNINGHAM P.31
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CREATIVE BUSINESS CUP P.22
MARIA VITTORIA ALBANI Ornella Bijoux P.29
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GIANNI SAPONE P.9
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TONY DI CORCIA P.39
GIANNI SAPONE
GIANNI SAPONE The colour of elegance By Emanuela Amy Rossi Mattia Vismara
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look to the past to create admirable collections of made in Italy couture, a touch of theatricality that combines an incredible bon ton elegance. This is the creative talent of Gianni Sapone.
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You created wonderful wedding dresses. What is, in your opinion, the colour of a wedding? Recently white has come back in fashion, but I prefer ivory, which is more elegant and refined. For the accessories such as shoes, gloves or bands around the wrist I love pastel colours. What is the model of gown for your ideal bride? No doubt a dress cut under the breast: it soars the figure and makes the woman ethereal and light, like the women that Botticelli used to paint. You took your first steps as shop boy in the Atelier Anna Mode 68. What did you get from that experience? I got a lot. It made me understand what does it mean to work in the show, that it is not only glowing, but it also implies a lot of strain and sacrifices. I still remember the nights spent working on mannequins to finish the gowns. “First of all, humility�, this is what they taught me and it is also the motto of my career and life. Which diva of the jet-set you would like to dress up? Anne Hathaway, she is absolutely the most beautiful woman from my point of view!
In your collection you usually play a lot with colours, but what is the colour of elegance? If I said black, I would be cliché. In my opinion, the colour of elegance is powder pink, refined and light. If you were to describe your gowns to somebody who has never seen them, what qualities would you highlight? First of all I would say that I get my inspiration from a costume collection which takes the inspiration from the vintage taste. I do not love minimalism and deconstruction of dresses. Gianni Sapone is a creative who can design a collection after watching a 40s or 50s film. An eye is always pointed to the past. You designed clothes for the play “La sciantosa”, starring Serena Autieri, tell us about that experience. I usually define Serena a “Wonder woman”, because at the same time she is at the theatre, she is shooting a film and then leaves for filming a fiction: she does everything! A splendid and humble woman with whom you can work very well. For the show we found an excellent bond between her character and my clothes and she was very happy about the result. We are now good friends! Let’s talk again about marriages. What should a guest wear during a ceremony and what should not? Never wear a long evening dress if the ceremony takes place in the morning. Rule number one, it seems granted, but very often you can see women in a long dress at 11 in the morning and it is something dreadful to me. Rule number two, abolish chiffon scarfs which are tied in the most absurd ways. They’re awful! A certain education in dressing up is required: I mean, the guest must not be prettier than the bride, she must not show too much cleavage nor be too “naked”. This is called Bon Ton. To whoever looks good in it, I suggest to wear a long palace trouser with a jacket or a sheath dress, which is always good. Be careful, black dresses only in the evening.
Thanks to Carlo Ottaviano, Adriana Sapone, Pino Leone, Andrea Damiano.
The right initiative that rewards creativity in economic activities. By Cristina Giannini Luisa Attardo
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reativity is Always the basis of every idea and at a time of maximum progress like this, having brilliant ideas may change your life. For this reason, several nationally and internationally competitions arose. They reward innovation in the field of business, spurring many talents to get in the game, giving the best of themselves. One of these is the Creative Business Cup, an international contest designed by the Center for Cultural and Experience Economy in Denmark, the place where the 17th and 19th November there will be the final phase, when the title of best creative entrepreneur of the year will be awarded. Now in its fifth year, it aims to promote and support creative entrepreneurs and their ideas. Citizens from all over the world can exhibit their projects. The team must be legally authorized to exploitation, and the chosen areas are numerous, from design, to architecture, as well as movies, music, books, etc. The task of selection is carried out by a jury of experts in setting up businesses in the field of the creative industry, which will select a number of teams who will have the honor of participating at the final stage in Copenhagen where a sum money, accelerator programs and training for the practical development of the project will be taken to auction.
For example, this year the team XYZE won the Creative Business Cup Italy 2014, thanks to the implementation of a new technology to indicate sizes and body measurements in real time. With this, you can order clothing on the internet pointing exactly your measures so as to minimize the return of clothes. With the help of three instruments developed by XYZE: ON, a tape that allows you to automatically take body measurements; Tutorial, an app that creates a digital and individual profile of the person by helping him in the measuring; an algorithm, which calculates the right measures of the user. Anyway, it took a lot of inventive and an original idea to create an almost revolutional solution in the field of the online shopping. So if you have an idea for the development of a creative enterprise in the industry field or you are working on creating a startup, do not hesitate to take part in events like these. The Creative Business Cup for this year has closed selections, since the last deliveries were at the end of July, but an event like this will almost certainly have another edition. Just keep you update, seizing the opportunities that are offered to us, staying informed about the world of business and its progress. Above all never stop to realize your dreams.
For further information on the above competition, visit the personal website of the event http://www.creativebusinesscupitalia.it
THE FASHION BLOGGER PHENOMENON By Enza Volpe Mattia Vismara
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would like to begin with a simple question: “Why do they have all this notoriety?”. In few years the blogger phenomenon became has affected many people. As far as our peninsula in concerned, Italy’s most famous fashion blogger is Chiara Ferragni. Ferragni opened her fashion blog theblondesalad.com in October 2009, in which she showed her personal look to her followers every day, with a great care to details, including text and taglines both in Italian and English. In few years her blog has grown up and counts about 12 millions views per month and it is one of the few Italian blogs to have been quoted in the New York Magazine. Thanks to her blog, Ferragni is now a very important person in the fashion business. Only this year she: Created a capsule collection for her shoe line: Chiara Ferragni for Shoescribe; Modeled for the Brazilian brand Luiza Barcelos’ lookbook; Collaborated with Burberry to promote the new store opening in Milan; Worked at a project by Louis Vuitton for the launch of Speedy bag; Was testimonial for “Yves Saint Laurent, le touché éclat”; Took part in New York, London, Milan, Paris, Moscow and São Paulo Fashion Weeks; Interviewed Ed Westwick Interviewed Stephen Droff; Was the main guest for Stefanel during the Vogue Fashion’s Night Out in Milan and Florence; Modeled for a 6 pages editorial on Vogue Brazil;
Everything was punctually posted on her blog. In Italy, however, she’s not the only one. There are bloggers in many cities and countries. To list some of the less famous, but still discretely famous, we have the beautiful Chiara Biasi. Biasi, like Ferragni, in little time registered thousands of views on her blog, which allowed her to create her bikini line, called “Bikinilovers”; furthermore she collaborated in the creation of a Lancia Ypsilon Elefantino, completely in style of Chiara Blasi. The chart does not end here and the third noteworthy blogger is another Chiara, the young Chiara Nasti: she is only 16 years old, she is from Naples and despite her young age, she counts thousands of views on her blog and 513.000 followers on Instagram. Chiara Nasti grew in the world of fashion thanks to her parent’s job and beyond doubt is a very particular beauty. These bloggers, thanks to their most direct way of communication with the audience, promote a certain clothe in a shorter time with more results, and because of this, they are always testimonial for many designers and take up the first rows of every fashion show. There is no doubt that the blogger phenomenon can lead to many innovations, but we wonder if we really need a 16-year-old girl to figure out how to dress. We leave the question to readers to ponder.
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O MARIA VITTORIA ALBANI Ornella Bijoux (Milano) By Angelica Grittani Selena Magni
rnella Bijoux is an historical brand based in Milan, that succeeded in getting appreciation from a wide public and has been awarded several prizes, among which the Swarovski Award and and the prize “Bottega storica di Milano” [This is a prize that is awarded to illustrious and ancient shops and commercial activities of the city of Milan. Ndr] The brand originates by the creative sparkle of Maria Vittoria Albani, who started working with her mother in 1943, during World War II, as sales representative of bijoux and perfumes for the factory GVM, that belonged to the Earl Visconti of Modrone. In 1944 she founded ORnella Bijoux and the new company bought the set of samples that previously belonged to GVM. From that moment on, all the collections have been designed by Maria Vittoria, who was well appreciated by the actresses of the time and managed to open a shop in Via Montenapoleone, in 1960. Excellence in her case is a brand that exalts female beauty and fashion, besides being a synonym of creativity and Made In Italy. With refined and peculiar materials such as coral, pearls, turquoises and shells, she renews her intention of enhancing the beauty and uniqueness of the women who wear these jewels. The refined choice of the brand has been able to allure several generations of women and the magic enclosed in these objects, unique pieces of handwork with a great charm, has been worn by famous women on international catwalks. Ornella Bijoux’s jewels are necklaces, bracelets, earrings that remind of nature, with lively colours and shapes that recall plants and flowers. Timeless jewels to catch the attention, handmade with care and taste for beautiful things. To find out more about this marvels, check the web site: ornellabijoux.com
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What’s the origin of the name Ornella Bijoux? The name was suggested to me by Dino Villani, who was director of the advertising office for GVM in 1944; he said that a bijoux is supposed to be an “ornament” for an elegant lady. Vintage, nature, transformation and art blend together in your creations. What elements characterize an “Ornella Bijoux” piece? Each piece is unique and entirely handmade: every jewel is the small realization of my vision of nature that evolves into art. Do you use any particular working techniques? My working techniques are the result of 70 years of artisan care and dedication and the study of unique objects, made with skill and fantasy and with particular materials. These jewels represent a timeless and refined taste. What’s the secret behind these small marvels? What do you take inspiration from for a new collection? My inspiration derives by the observation of nature and art: colours, nuances and shapes as well as materials that reproduce the beauty of these two worlds. What’s your relationship with the city of Milan? It’s a wonderful city, full of neighbourhoods to discover and places where it’s still possible to feel the old times. This city has a tiring routine but it gives pace to our job and a drive to keep it.
You received important awards (Swarovski Prize) and you made displays in famous galleries abroad. Women from the show business want to wear your jewels, becoming testimonials. What’s the greatest satisfaction you have obtained from your job? I’m quite shy by character and I’m not fit for social life, therefore I experience these awards both as signs of appreciation for my creations and as a reward for the talent of Italian stylists in the world. How do you perceive women today? What jewel represent them the best? Today’s women must be able to choose their accessories not according to trends, but following their own heart: whatever a woman wears must be the mirror of what she feels inside. Any object, any jewel, be that a bracelets, a brooch or a necklace, should always be the mirror of the soul. How is femininity expressed? A woman’s femininity is the ability of being discreet even when she’s under the lights of a smart set. It’s the ability of outshining while apparently staying aside.
BILL CUNNINGHAM A life-long devotion to street style By Gaia Bregalanti Mattia Vismara
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uring Twentieth Century it was mostly fashion designers who imposed the main trend, or the dressing codes, but recently people have started to look somewhere else in search for inspiration. In fact, catwalk’s clothes seemed too odd and often impossible to wear, and this is why people have turned to the “Street Style”. What is it? Literally it is the fashion which comes from the street, a kind of fashion created mostly by young people rather than designers. It is thought that this style was born recently, because of its late boom, but actually it has its origin in the now 85-year-old Bill Cunningham, who has been walking through the New York street with his camera this last 50 years. Bill is considered as the first street photographer in the fashion world. “I like the actual fashion, not the disguises” he says, and adds “I like beautiful and well-cut clothes, and women who have a taste for elegance”. Bill takes photos of all he likes and that strikes him in fashion. He is a proper fashion journalist, all his pictures are personally chosen and catalogued in archives and the only “portal” where his works are published is the New York Times, the newspaper he works for and for which he still runs a fashion column.
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VALENTINO “A choral portrait of the last emperor of fashion” By Olivier Di Gianni Selena Magni
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real passion for fashion, for its language and its protagonists that has driven Tony Di Corcia to dive in this endless and varied universe since he was fifteen. Two books about Gianni Versace, the stylist with a refined heart, as the author defines him, one about Burberry and then Master Valentino Garavani. This book, published by Lindau- Le Comete and recently presented at AltaRoma in January 2014, is a collection of records and commentaries of people who have loved as well as criticised Valentino’s style, character and life choices. Let’s get to know the author. Tony Di Corcia is a professional journalist, who graduated in Law with a dissertation entitled “Lex Oppia Sumptuaria: luxury, women and feminism in Republican Rome”. Especially guilty are the 90s, in his opinion, because they bear the blending of music, creativity and beauty and it was then that Fashion came out of its ivory tower to talk to the world. It’s in these years that the writer starts to study this phenomenon by a sociological and behavioural point of view, in order to better understand society through the movements of fashion. Gianni Versace is the absolute protagonist, who shook up the language and the rules of a world that had talked too few chosen ones, up to that day. That’s the reason that lies behind the need to have a deeper understanding of the personality who has given so much to fashion, and who, in my opinion, still gives much.
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From Versace, passing through Burberry, to Valentino. Three different styles. Why? The success of my books about Versace, even on an international scale, has convinced my publisher to ask me to write about a brand similar to Hermès, and that’s why Burberry, and then to tell about an iconic character, well known world wide as well. I’ve had no doubts: Valentino Garavani! His was the first fashion show I’ve attended and he’s a person the whole world knows about because of his creations and his style. I didn’t choose a hagiographic style, since Monsieur is still living, but a collection of interviews of people who know him personally and professionally, all listed by alphabetic order, so from A to Z, with an ironic style. Fashion doesn’t save human lives but it surely improves them, in many cases! So, do you agree with what Franca Sozzani, Editor in Chief of Vogue Italia, has recently declared to Telegraph UK, that fashion is not ridiculous but it’s fashion’s people that make it so? Of course I agree! I believe that fashion is like cinema. They both represent culture and history but not all the people that are part of it can communicate this aspects. They are more inclined to make a show out of it, regardless of the fact that these are expressions of art, and they are all “Lovely” “Top” and “Marvellous” and other exclamations of the sort. Stylists, and I refer to great stylists, are or were people of great culture, I think about Gianni Versace and Antonio Marras… And so is Valentino? His is an empiric culture. He’s had the chance to know great characters, from crowned heads whom he himself has dressed to exponents of politics, art, cinema and show business. He’s shared moments of their life with them, sometimes as co-protagonist. His grandeur has lied in his use of his acquaintance with these wonderful and royal women and his skill in enhancing their feminine aspects through his creations. He’s always pursued beauty and his women have always been surrounded by a royal halo, like in a dream, even in his Pret-àporter collections.
How much has French couture influenced Valentino? Very much. Valentino was born and raised inside couture and French style. His credit is that, thanks to his intellect and creative gift, he has translated the French teachings into an Italian, Mediterranean style. Valentino’s woman is absolutely Italian, stylish, refined, warm and soothing but with an international taste, that’s why his clothes have the appreciation of foreign, important women. His kind of woman is beautiful but not ethereal, it’s practical, not just poetic. His peculiar style of drapery and embroidery has contributed in creating a personal style, and we should not forget that one of the most difficult colours has become one of his style marks: Valentino red! Pier Paolo Piccioli and Maria Grazia Chiuri are now in charge of Maison Valentino, do you think they respect and honour the brand? They’re two great creative minds and a rare example of a respectful interpretation of the glorious history and tradition of Valentino’s brand, just like Karl Lagerfeld’s for Chanel. They pay attention to the market, they’re great and tireless workers, they can pay homage to the huge archive with a contemporary look and without offending the company’s values. One strong point is also the fact that they didn’t move the head quarter elsewhere because Valentino has always been based in Rome. During the Milan Fashion Week of February Valentino attended Prada’s show, what impression did you have? Well, I think Valentino had a lot of fun. It’s surely a nice sign of respect between stylists, especially in this case that they embody two completely different worlds. He can do this now that he’s not working anymore and he’s devoted only to his passions. To conclude, Tony, do you think, too, that Valentino without Giancarlo Giammetti wouldn’t be Valentino and the other way round? Giancarlo Giammetti has been writer, director and co-protagonist of the “movie” of Valentino’s life. A real partner, from any point of view, a human, emotional and professional support. I’d be honoured to make the acquaintance of Valentino and I’m definitely interested in meeting Giammetti.”
Thanks to Gianni Catani, Luca Sorrentino, Tommaso Abatescianni_Clack Photo
How the concept of fashion has changed nowadays! Where do ideas come from? From the catwalks or from the streets? New generation stylists stand and stare….
“When I opened “The Sartorialist” my only strategy was to take pictures of the people on the streets who had the most interesting looks, using the technique that designers used when they were looking for inspiration. They rarely design a total look out of their heads, they would rather assemble small details “stolen” from different subjects. My pictures satisfy this requirements, highlighting combinations of colours, cuts and details.” Scott Schuman – The Sartorialist
Fashion nowadays is written on the pavements of the cities that are transformed into catwalks. From the 90s on, stylist have found that the street style provides a new source of inspiration for their creations. Famous stars don’t set trends anymore, it’s bloggers, influencer and common people who combine different styles and brands in everyday life to do the trick.
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