SEPARATE COLLECTION POLIMODA

Florence is linked to its Renaissance image but like every city it can offer surprising locations, this is the case of the Manifattura Tabacchi, a building complex of rationalist architecture, which after almost two decades of abandonment is transformed into a center of culture and contemporary life destined to host the third headquarters of Polimoda.  And it is precisely this process of reuse and redefinition, the common thread of the 2018 show of the Florentine institute Polimoda, which presented inside its new headquarters, a selection of twenty-one collections created by the students of the fashion design course, in collaboration with Sara Kozlowski, CFDA Director of Education and Professional Development, entitled “Separate collection” (differentiated collection), a play on words on the themes of fashion, sustainability and fashion upcycling.  An invitation   to  reflect on the lack of identity that is generated by the excessive consumption of contemporary society.  The show was therefore an “open letter” on various ethical, social and environmental themes.

The theme of environmental impact addressed by Anna Dorian with her men's collection "Stop f*cking with my animals"; she points the finger   at the policy   of the United States under the current (negligent) government. The geographical areas most affected by climate change are engraved on brightly colored pieces, a collection that attacks the environmental crisis of our time.

Silvia Barcucci with her collection “Mirabile ricordabile” places baptismal clothing at the center of her research, as a representation of the first moment of identity formation. With prodigious lace shapes and a fusion of banal objects, the collection mixes ceremonial garments with traditional sportswear.

The contemporary use of religion   is instead the theme of the women's collection "Biocentric" by Alessandra Montani .   For Alessandra we must work to create new belief systems, a more conscious lifestyle. Liturgical clothes are the basis of the collection,   enriched by hand-drawn prints that transform religious vestments into sportswear.

Gauhar Afroze Ali , chooses to tell her journey in the north of Pakistan, an area bordering China, with her men’s collection “Farsh-e-firashan” by patching together prayer rugs, tapestries, wool and cotton fabrics, to evoke the fusion of time and cultures. A mosaic of fabrics and shapes, the collection pays homage to the restless and wandering spirit.

Finally, Sakina Fuse with her collection “Lavori in corso” was inspired by the multi-colored uniforms worn by street cleaners in Italy, playing with vintage clothes, space blankets and traces of streetwear to tell her experience of sailing in a foreign land.

Also interesting are the words of Danilo Venturi, director of Polimoda, which we find in the press release of the Institute: “Through the process of reusing and redefining clothes, materials, places and even ourselves, we can restore dignity to a possible future for future generations.”

The final coda of the show is not by chance set to the notes of “Drone Bomb Me” by Anohni, a musician of English origins, resident in the United States, who has publicly taken a stand against the hypocrisy of governments regarding climate change and wars.

Finally, let us remember the Polimoda award “ The Best Collection 2018”  to  Giunia Guerrera  with the collection “Sentimental materialism”. Selected by a panel composed of some of the most influential names in international fashion and led by Steven Kolb , president and CEO of the Council of Fashion Designers of America, is called to judge the collections and decree The Best Collection for 2018 . On the jury the actor and designer Waris Ahluwalia (House of Waris), the founders of Diet Prada Tony Liu & Lindsey Schuyler , Christiane Arp (Editor-in chief, Vogue Germany), Burak Cakmak (Dean of Fashion, Parsons), Sam Cotton (Head of Menswear, Alexander McQueen), Natalie Gibson (Fashion Print Tutor, Central Saint Martins), Zaim Kamal (Creative Director, Montblanc), Olya Kuryshchuk (Founder & Editor-in- chief, 1 Granary), Jonathan Kyle Farmer (Professor & Chair MFA Fashion Design, Fashion Institute of Technology), Linda Loppa (Advisor Strategy & Vision, Polimoda), Antonio Mancinelli (Editor-in-chief, Hearst Magazines Italy), Bruce Pask (Men's Fashion Director, Bergdorf Goodman), Laudomia Pucci (Deputy Chairman & Image Director, Emilio Pucci), Martyn Roberts (Director, Graduate Fashion Week), Olga Sushko (Editor-in-chief, Vogue Ukraine), An Vandevorst & Filip Arickx (Founders, AF Vandevorst), Riccardo Vannetti (Tutorship Director, Pitti Immagine).

Credits

1. Photo collections: Giovanni Giannoni
2. Atmosphere photo: Federica Fioravant