Young Italian (and not only) fashion designers found their space at AltaRoma, among fashion shows, exhibitions and new initiatives. Here the report about the most interesting new talents and emerging designers seen during the days dedicated to Italian Haute Couture.
For some time now there’s a generational turnover in the panorama of Italian fashion. Finally after years of crisis, even though we can’t say that is already finished, Italian Haute Couture is finding new energies and new blood in young fashion designers.
Although it’s in search of funding and support from institutions and privates, for AltaRoma there’s a new intention to support fashion schools and emerging talents, refreshing a schedule made of the usual big and classic names with unknown but talented young people, through a considerable series of events, partnerships and initiatives.
Going to Rome to see some fashion shows and exhibitions I found a pleasant mood, full of energies and enthusiasm, new ideas and ways to present fashion concepts, the courage of being still alive despite every difficulty. Something that I haven’t seen for a long time. Accustomed to think about Italian Haute Couture like many others as something “old” and too classic, I was really impressed to see all the changes of this edition. A new direction we hope can be durable.
Here the most interesting and innovative things seen at AltaRoma.
Rome is not only the capital of the country, but also land of renowned fashion schools, with a long tradition about sartorial fashion and Haute Couture. Private accademies or public universities are engaged in perpetuate the best tailoring and artisanal techniques conjugating with the most modern approach to fashion design and innovation. Thanks to the support of AltaRoma, the best fashion schools of Rome and Lazio had the important occasion to showcase their graduate collections and new projects to mass media and public.
During the first day of AltaRoma, the ACCADEMIA DI BELLE ARTI DI ROMA presented the fashion show “Private2” with all the best outfits of the course of Fashion Design and, on 27th January, all the students of both I° and II° level of the course “Culture e tecnologie della moda” showcased their creations through artistic installations at the academy’s headquarters, with a common theme of inspirations and the same students as models.
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| Accademia di Belle Arti di Roma |
ACCADEMIA ITALIANA DI ARTE MODA DESIGN presented the collection of sweaters created by its students and inspired to entrepreneur and financial icons of new economy in the exhibition entitled “New (fashion) icons. Da Sergio Marchionne a Bill Gates”, an excursion into the wardrobe of those men who made the classic sweater as symbol of their power.
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| Accademia Italiana Arte Moda Design |
On 26th January ACCADEMIA KOEFIA opened its laboratories to public with an event entitled “La moda a misura d’uomo”, a special occasion to show the reality of the school with students at work, teachers in live lessons, models who show the creations in denim of the graduate collections. Between sewing and knitting machines, weaving looms, handmade embroideries, mannequins, scissors and needles, Accademia Koefia puts on a fantastic real-life appointement with creators and places where Haute Couture is born every day.
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| Accademia Koefia |
As we have seen in the previous post (here ), ACCADEMIA DI COSTUME E MODA presented the capsule collections of 15 students last saturday 27th January. From more contemporary style to pioneering or theatrical, all the collections of womenswear, menswear and accessories were absolutely innovative and perfectly realized in every detail. In addition to the fashion show, all the students of the Master course showcased their projects for a/w 2018-19 in an exhibition at Galleria Contemporary Cluster.
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| Accademia di Costume e Moda |
ACCADEMIA DI MODA MAIANI presented at Guido Reni District a collective collection of the students of the course Patternmaking for Fashion, accredited by Regione Lazio. “C’era una volta…” was inspired by fantastic and real world. On one side characters of fairy tales like princesses and dragons, on the other the destruction of earthquakes and desolation of abandoned buildings.
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| Accademia Maiani |
The students of the Fashion Styling course were the protagonists of the event organized by IED ISTITUTO EUROPEO DI DESIGN, who presented “SINsation”, a fashion show in which the students have revised in a modern key 70 historical costumes for theater and cinema of the important and famous Archivio Annamode.
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| IED Istituto Europeo di Design |
Surprisingly innovative are the creations of the students from ACCADEMIA DI BELLE ARTI DI FROSINONE, presented in a collective fashion show entitled “Interferenze Pop-up”, in which unexpected incursions of colors and unusual geometrical shapes broke the sophisticated palette of grey shades and the rigorous sartorial silhouettes through the use of 3D printing and laser cuts.
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| Accademia di Belle Arti di Frosinone |
At Hotel Domus Romana ACCADEMIA ALTIERI MODA E ARTE once again demonstrated all the great technical and artisanal skills of its students with the exhibition “Dream and Innovation”, in which all the young designers of the course of Fashion Design in collaboration with the students of Visual Merchandising course presented their creations of Haute Couture.
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| Accademia Altieri |
For the first time AltaRoma, in collaboration with ICE Agenzia presented a new project dedicated to emerging Italian brands established for less than 10 years which product 100% in Italy. SHOWCASE at MAXXI Museum is a space for 40 young designers, selected with a public contest and on rotation during the AltaRoma days, where to present their collections of apparel and accessories and have the opportunity to be in contact with buyers, traders, journalists and bloggers. Among all the brands present at Showcase, I want to present a selection of the most 12 innovative designers:
- 16R, founded in 2016 by Romina Caponi, specialized in knitwear at Polimoda in Florence, focused on luxury knitwear with folk and artistic influences, graphic lines, three-dimensional textures and artisanal techniques.
- BENEDETTA BRUZZICHES, was founded in 2009 by Benedetta and Agostino, who designed luxury handbags realized with artisanal techniques and inspired by free connections with life and harmony of Nature.
- GILBERTO CALZOLARI, after 15 years of experience with prestigiuos international brands, founded in 2015 his namesake label. Refined, glamour and innovative in the particular combination of materials, is characterized by a very high tailoring quality and strong identity.
- A-LAB MILANO by Alessandro Biasi is decidedly oriented to future, without forgetting sartorial tradition. The designer use digital printings and technological materials to emphasize the sense of contemporaneousness of female silhouettes.
- AROMA 30 is a brand founded by Michela Fasanella, who studied at Accademia di Costume e Moda (Rome) and Central Saint Martins (London). A seasonless concept, the focus on craftsmanship and a strong ethic of attention to sustainability are the key-points of this label.
- THE DOTS is a project by the designer Ral Teofilova, who designed adorable rigid handbags completely Made in Italy, with interchangeable decorations inspired, for this season, to superpowers in Nature and humanity.
- ANGELIA AMI is a label founded in 2016 by Angelia Corno, who blends vintage flavors to more contemporary ideas, ethnic influences and European design, textile experimentation and traditional tailoring.
- GAETANO POLLICE, who studied and currently teaches at Istituto Secoli in Milan, realized a collection of bags inspired by the ancient techniques of bobbin lace. The “Tombolo Bags”, Made in Molise, are inspired for a/w 2018-19 to sea and sky, revisited in a pop-key.
- GRETA BOLDINI, founded in 2011 and directed by Alexander Flagella, in 2014 was finalist at “Who Is On Next?”. A label characterized by a modern concept of romanticism, personal, sensual and intimate in a perennial search of the sense of beauty and poetry.
- DEMANUMEA is a single case in fashion industry. Silvia Scaramucci creates artistic unique bags, ooak entirely handmade in Italy, painted, embroidered or scuplted by international artists. For this season the theme is galactic, surreal and with a futuristic visionary.
- SILVIO BETTERELLI was founded in 2009, winning the special Jury Prize at “Who Is On Next?”. For this season his inspiration starts from Venice’s lagoon and traditional clothing revisited in volumes and decorations with embroideries, fringes and rich colors.
- WOOBAG was launched in 2015 by the designer duo Sara Da Dalt and Sheila Pierobon, both architects from Treviso, who decided to work with the simplicity of wood and a minimal aesthetic to create something original in the accessory world.
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| Collections at SHOWCASE |
CUMULO is a showcase of the 5 accessory designers rewarded during the last edition of “Who Is On Next?”. The exhibition was in a unique space at Guido Reni District, realized by the student Alice Ariano of the Master in Exhibit & Public Design of the Architectural Departement of La Sapienza University in Rome, inspired by the artwork “Earth Room” by Walter de Maria. There the designers AMANTI , ANDREA MONDIN, MARCO PROIETTI DESIGN, NICO GIANI and ROBERTO DI STEFANO presented their a/w 2018-19 collection of shoes and bags.
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| CUMULO exhibition |
A.I. 50YEARSLATER at Galleria Nazionale di Arte Moderna e Contemporanea, is an exhibition that think back to 1968 and all the revolutionary aesthetic and fashion movements of those years comparing to new creativity of the young students, more dedicated to rediscover artisanal and slow production more than fashion used as symbol of rebellion.
The comparison start with a special guest, Gabriele Skukas, coming from Central Saint Martins, and continue with the creation of students and ex-alumni coming from the best Italian fashion schools.
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| A.I. 50YEARSLATER exhibition |
AltaRoma demonstrated all its internationality through three initiatives focused on foreign young designers.
At the residence of British Ambassador in Italy, Villa Wolkonsky, was organized by DIT- Department for International Trade the event FASHION IS GREAT, the first fashion show born to promote British design in our country, with the presentation of the a/w 2018-19 collection “Reimagined Perception” of the eclectic designer Sadie Clayton, who celebrate the beauty of diversity through models of different ages, abilities, sizes and race wearing beautiful sculptoreal dresses in a warm color palette lit by copper shades.
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| Sadie Clayton for FASHION IS GREAT |
Fashion made in Calabria, through Cosenza Fashion Week, partecipated to AltaRoma with a special event organized to encourage cultural exchange between different countries. A collective fashion show to present the creations of young emerging designer coming from all over the world. Among them, I want to mention DIMITAR DRADI for his innovative dresses rich of theatrical emphasis and incredible three-dimensional and sculptoreal volumes.
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| Dimitar Dradi for Globe Fashion |
PORTUGAL FASHION/BLOOM was a collective fashion show in partnership with AltaRoma, to present the collections of three young Portoguese designers:
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David Catalàn, a menswear brand inspired by modern sportswear and focused on new mix of materials and layers
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Inês Torcato, a womenswear brand characterized by a contemporary reinterpretation of great classics of wardrobe and traditional fabrics.
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Nycole, a menswear label who blends sartorial tradition to sporty silhouettes and colors.
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| PORTUGAL FASHION/BLOOM |
Among traditional names of Haute Couture, in recent years AltaRoma is focusing even more its attention on new brands that in this edition presented their collections.
The even more forced relationship between humanity and technology is the central point of the a/w 2018-19 collection entitled “offLIFE” of the brand MINIMAL TO, designed by the stylistic trio Elisa Mazza, Danila Olivieri and Stefano Berze. In a world dominated by appearance and superficiality induced by our hi-tech devices, the collection wants to be a reflection on the theme of modern psychological captivity and an exhortation to become free through a return to nature.
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| “offLIFE” collection by MINIMAL TO |
FILIPPO LATERZA showcased is Haute Couture s/s 18 collection entitled “Opera Orientale”, a connection between East and West through the Silk Road that from China arrives to England in a triumph of lurex brocades, rich embroideries, tulle and fringes applied on traditional fabrics like Prince of Wales and tartan.
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| collection by Filippo Laterza |
Galib Gassanov and Luca Lin, designers of the brand ACT N°1, after winning the last edition of “Who Is On Next?2017”, presented at Galleria Nazionale di Arte Moderna e Contemporanea the collection “Show N° 0”, a multicultural conversation between opposites and hybrids, from ancient China to oriental carpet and grunge aesthetic, in a virtuous mix and match of floral patterns, rich velvets, sweatshirts and shirts deconstructed and reassembled to create a unique and personal wardrobe.
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| “Show N° 0” collection by ACT N°1 |
The artist and designer SooJung Cha, already finalist of “Who Is On Next?2012” and founder of the label SOOCHA, presented the collection “Atti Umani/Human Acts” for a/w 2018-18 at Guido Reni District. Inspired by a brutal military act in South Corea, the collection is a reflection about hope, peace and freedom. Revisiting the traditional Corean costumes the designer mixes different elements in a game of contrasts, poetic and modern.
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| “Atti umani/Human Acts” collection by SOOCHA |
An important occasion for young designers and fashion students was given by PORTFOLIO REVIEW, an event on selection organized by Vogue Italia and AltaRoma to support new talents. A day on which students coming from each kind of fashion school, academies and universities had the possibility to show their portfolios and having tips and opinions by two great experts, Sara Sozzani Maino, Deputy Editor in Chief of Vogue Italia ed Head of Vogue Talents, and Simonetta Gianfelici, Fashion Consultant & Talent Scout, Head of Project “Who Is On Next?” at Altaroma.
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| PORTFOLIO REVIEW by Vogue Talents and AltaRoma |
See you soon with other fashion stories!
