Emilio Pucci and Como, 1950-1980

Emilio Pucci e Como, 1950-1980 opens on May 6th, 2014 at 6.30 pm at the Museo Studio del Tessuto, Villa Sucota. The exhibition – curated by Margherita Rosina and Francina Chiara – will be on display until the autumn. It analyses the working relationship between Pucci and the textile industries of the Como area, a collaboration that began in the 1950s and continued throughout the following decades. Through its sections, the exhibition documents the beginning and the success of Pucci’s creations, from the early drawings inspired by the Italian countryside and folklore: the sea of Capri, the famous ski resorts of the Alps, Siena’s Palio, the Sicilian traditions and the beauty of Florence. As explained by Emilio Pucci during an interview to the Italian magazine Oggi in 1960: “My passion for colour led me to find new possibilities […]. I am convinced that Italy offers an inexhaustible variety of motifs and ideas and I have tried to transfer on textile its most significant elements.” The exhibition unveils the research on the sample books of the manufacturer Ravasi of Como, which was the first textile industry of the area to work with Pucci from the early 1950s to the mid 1960s. The pages of the sample books belonging to the MuST’s collections highlight the contribution made by Como’s designers, printers, tracers and dyers that were able for example to develop new shades of colour such as “Rosa Emilio” or the “Blu Capri”. A selection of materials produced in Como during the 1970s and 1980s completes the show, establishing a further evidence of the longterm collaboration between Pucci and the local textile district. The display includes are samples books, original drawings by Pucci, printing proves, accessories and clothing documenting the creative process: from the idea to the dresses and scarves made famous by the shots taken by some of the most iconic fashion photographers.

Moreover, POLIteca (Design Knowledge Centre) – Dipartimento Design e Archivi Storici – ASBA – Politecnico di Milano has provided images from the Haertter’s fund, which holds the images of the famous photographer. Loans from the archive of the Emilio Pucci Foundation of Florence – numerous images of dresses and scarves – allow visitors to better understand the use of the textiles on show. At the entrance of the exhibition four artworks by Flavio Favelli, dated 2009, establish a small foray in the field of contemporary art. These works – which are part of the series Planisfero and Bar Singapore Palermo – start from some of Emilio Pucci’s scarves on which the artist has intervened by drawing with coloured markers. Chosen by Favelli for their style “out of time”, Pucci’s scarves are transformed by the artistic intervention and gain new meanings, building a direct bridge with our contemporaneity. The exhibits s on display come from the MuST collections and from the Museo didattico della Seta, Como, Enrico Quinto and Paolo Tinarelli, Rome, A.N.G.E.L.O. Vintage Archive, Lugo, Masciadri, Bellagio and from other private collections. The exhibition catalogue, published by NodoLibri, Como, provides the reader with additional information to further research this subject. Starting from textiles – mostly produced in Como – the volume analyses the “story of Pucci” in parallel with the rise of fashion Boutique, which has contributed to the success of the “Made in Italy”.

Images © Fondazione Antonio Ratti.