During the 2021 edition of the Fashion Graduate Italia, IUAD Accademia della Moda presented 10 capsule collection created by their best and most promising fashion students. “NO BOUNDERIES” is the theme and concept behind the projects.
IUAD Accademia della Moda is recognized by the Ministry of Education, University and Research among the AFAM Institutions for 1st level academic courses in Fashion Design, Interior Design and Architecture, Communication Design and 2nd level academic courses in Art & copy and in Accessory Design.
To date, the fashion academy has two headquarters, Naples and Milan. The institute was born with its first courses in the 1960s and today offers a wide range of training courses, ranging from fashion to interior design, with a copyrighted system for all sectors of clothing (men, women, children, casual, underwear, underwear and corsetry, shirts) and footwear.
For the Fashion Graduate Italia 2021, the leitmotif of the ten collections was Identity: ever-changing identities like a rough canvas in which contrasts coexist, identities lost in past memories or in the Pirandellian sense which leads man to confront the canons of an artificial society experiencing anguish and fear.
Every collection is linked to the concept of tailoring and craftsmanship that is composed and decomposed like the Rubik’s cube for example the Japanese kintsugi technique, the Filipino loom techniques or macramé that gives life to a metissage between East and West.
Another main topic is the sustainability achieved through the recovery and transformation of fabric waste. An inner journey with no creative, spiritual or concrete boundaries, therefore, able to excite and bring us back to the world of tailoring and experimentation with shapes and fabrics.
Raffaella Petraccaro
The fashion collection “homo homini lupus” by the emerging designer Raffaella Petraccaro analyzes the selfish interest of the single individual who has to face the surrounding society on a daily basis. A society that appears homologated and dedicated exclusively to work and production, a society therefore, enslaved and alienated.
Wild and animalistic elements, such as animalier fabrics, alternate with more classic elements and structures. Buckles, laces, belts and accessories that recall the world of travel, especially safaris, make the garments modern and interesting.
Michele Ricci
The “Episode 22” project by Michele Ricci is a result of an image that flash into his mind, which has as its protagonist an identity in constant change, an infinite work, a rough canvas in which contrasts coexist.
Acid and bright colours like red and green play in contrasts with neutrals, light and dark shades. Jewellery elements adorn the faces of the models, as well as the garments, giving a certain preciousness and luxury twist to the entire capsule collection.
A special mention goes to the bags, whether mini or maxi, they are a mix and match of colours and materials that are very modern, interesting and spot on.
Michelle Gambi
The “Yowai” graduate collection by Michelle Gambi is based on the Japanese kintsugi technique, the art of repairing ceramics through the use of gold. It is also based on the wabi-sabi philosophy, in which imperfection rules, a typical oriental standard of beauty, far from our European canons.
Imperfect, deconstructed and asymmetrical volumes, gold processing and intertwined chains, modern and glamorous vision of the ancient kintsugi technique are the main features.
Elena Sofia Casolaro
The “Contesto” collection created by the fashion student Elena Sofia Casolaro, in the etymological sense of the term, represents what is woven together, is the idea of a knot that unites two apparently distant worlds and which, through macramé, gives life to a metissage between East and West recalled in the processes carried out entirely in hand through different weaving techniques.
Each culture is a mixture of influences and contaminations coming from the peoples of different geographic areas; precisely this inevitable intertwining of threads wants to indicate, in this work, the term macrame.
Jonah Mae Gardose
“Ala ala” capsule collection by Jonah Mae Gardose aims to represents her Filipino heritage and culture.
The typical elements of her country such as loom weaving, traditional clothes and strong colours, are featured with a contemporary and urban aspect of the western world.
Oversized sleeves and exaggerated volumes characterize the garments.
Annalisa Palmisano
Annalisa Palmisano found inspiration for her collection in the famous Rubik’s cube, the faces that change colour and the interlocking of different pieces that form a whole.
She reinterpreted the concept using a particular technical process. Her graduate project titled “Incastro Perfetto” represents her vision of an ideal fashion, which is a combination of traditional tailoring and experimental pattern making. The collection offers rigid and structured lines and volumes, but softened by the transparencies due to the processing.
Each look is monochromatic, the colour palette is made up by the classic black and white, a touch of dark antique pink and a beautiful shade of purple, that immediately caught our attention.
Jasmine Goventosa
“Waste” is the journey the young designer Jasmine Goventosa made into upcycling, between traditions and experiments, which tells the story of sustainable change through the recovery and transformation of waste.
It is a step back in the past, made up of contact with nature which discarded foods that afford new life in dyeing, in craftsmanship where hands appear always dirty and at work; the collection is also a step forward, in the future, with the creation of new type jeans that change in value and durability.
The garments are characterized by denim fabric, fringed, cut-outs and crossings that create a dynamic effect with a contemporary and modern vision.
Gaia Iovinella
“An.bi.de” is the expression that symbolically represents and encompasses the diseases of the 21st century: anxiety, depression, bipolarity. These are psychic disorders that pathologically alter the cognitive, behavioural and relational sphere. The individual, dominated by these sensations, cannot find a way out, appearing incapable, useless.
Unable to understand himself and his surroundings, unable to feel free, to express himself and to love. The collection aims to represent such a topical theme but revisited in an artistic and creative way. The disorder is expressed differently depending on the pathology.
The fashion student Gaia Iovinella expresses her thoughts on the diseases through her collection, thanks to a carefully selected mix and match of fabrics, silhouettes and shapes, that convey the idea of chaos and overwhelming feelings. Bows, ruffles and rouches contrast the strict lines of the suits.
Raffaella Cinquegrana
The project “Remember” by Raffaella Cinquegrana is a fashion collection based on the rediscovery of old elements of the past, giving voice to craftsmanship and the old values. The research focuses on the fabrics of the family kits and the work entirely handmade by women of the past. Each dress brings with it a memory, a value, an identity. Each element allows to create a story, a tale and convey a timeless emotion.
The garments are a skilful composition of lace, strings and volumes that are extremely modern and contemporary but always linked to the past traditions and values.
Remo Vanacore
“I Don’t Wanna Be Persona” is a queer collection by the young fashion designer Remo Vanacore based on the Pirandellian work “Uno, nessuno e centomila” where the loss of identity leads men to confront the canons of an artificial society.
Identity is changeable, in continuous movement and transformation, it is like words, with time it acquires new meanings, adapting to the reality that surrounds us. A reality that deforms, expands and changes, where old meanings become new meanings.
The garments are linked by a fil rouge or in this case a literal green thread that joins most of the outfits. The young designer combines different techniques and styles, such as tailoring and knitting, creating a new mix, modern and captivating.
Article by Federica Macheda
