Milan | Clothes that resemble architecture, sculptures moulded into the fabric. Where experimentation and craftsmanship meet, intertwining the genius of a fashion innovator.
Metaphors. Roberto Capucci: marvel of form, takes centre stage at Triennale Milano. Curated by Corriere della Sera’s fashion, costume and design journalist, Gian Luca Bauzano, the exhibit is a collaboration between the Roberto Capucci Foundation and Rometti ceramics factory and is part of the series Mestieri d’Arte & Design. Crafts Culture, which in the Quadreria space displays an unprecedented point of view on contemporary applied arts.
Open from November 17 2021 until January 9 2022, the exhibition is the result of the annual collaboration between Triennale Milano and the Cologni dei Mestieri d’Arte Foundation. A journey through the work of one of the great protagonists of Italian fashion, Roberto Capucci, narrating his story and vision.
Innovator and experimenter, known internationally as the “Silk Sculptor”, Capucci celebrates an important milestone this year: 70 years since his first official appearance as a stylist. His creative process is explored in the dedicated spaces of the Palazzo dell’Arte, marked by the experimentation of shapes and materials, and by a mindful and visionary design. Along the way, his clothes are exhibited, intended as sculptural and architectural projects, moulded with fabric.
The Maestro’s garments are flanked by his drawings and the collection of ceramic sculptures he designed, produced by the Italian ceramic company, Ceramiche Rometti, and created by the artistic director Jean-Christophe Clair: twenty unique pieces in clay and enamels – works, vases and centrepieces – entirely made and decorated by hand, inspired by various models of Capucci’s dresses.
Enhancing Capucci’s creations are the sartorial busts of the Atelier Collection by Bonaveri, which accompany visitors to the core of the creative and emotional journey of the genius of Roberto Capucci. The classic bust figures follow simple and elegant shapes, covered in linen fabric and with a wooden base, some with articulated wooden arms.
The busts bring together the materiality, the colours, the shapes and the compositions of the clothes, giving rise to a sensorial experience. Customizable and flexible, the figures express, amid innovation and tradition, a sense of tailoring, revealing attention to detail typical of Bonaveri creations, thus a natural selection for the most important international exhibitions.
Metaphors. Roberto Capucci: marvels of form
Metaphors. Roberto Capucci: wonders of form explores the path of Roberto Capucci, marked by 40 years of experimentation with shapes and materials. The works on stage tell the creative path of Capucci: marked by research, experimentation, continuous exploration, as well as collaboration with skilled crafters. A journey undertaken based solely on creative freedom.
The protagonist of the exhibition is one of the 12 works proposed at the 1995 Venice Biennale: Diaspro. In the range of creations on stage, there are also those that show the research on shapes (such as the dress from the Box Line or the one in silk and plastic made in Paris in 1966), and the use of new materials for the time, including rope and pebbles, bamboo and brass. Also exhibited is the tailcoat with eighteenth-century features presented in 1992 at the Schauspielhaus in Berlin, defined by plissé, overlapping and shades of colour.
“Today’s fashion often seems omnivorous and too fast. Tied to programmed obsolescence that privileges a futile appearance, and hides the creative and artisan professionalism that works daily with a commitment to creating fabrics, garments, accessories that take on the wonderful forms of dreams,” says Franco Cologni, president, Fondazione Cologni dei Mestieri d’Arte. “Roberto Capucci invites us instead to look at fashion with different eyes, telling with talent a true story of beauty and splendour.”
“Metaphors. Roberto Capucci: marvels of form is an opportunity to discover the research and craftsmanship that is the basis of the collections of the Master of fashion. Bonaveri tailored busts fit into this context, emphasizing how quality, beauty and care reside in Made in Italy creations” says Andrea Bonaveri, CEO of Bonaveri.
Credits
Metafore. Roberto Capucci: meraviglie della format
November 17 2021 – January 9 2022
Cutoror: Gian Luca Bauzano
In collaboration with: Fondazione Roberto Capucci and Rometti
Project coordination: Fondazione Cologni dei Mestieri d’Arte
General supervision, design, set-up and production: Studiometria
Lighting: iGuzzini
Mannequins: Bonaveri
Transportationi: Open Care Servizi per l’Arte Insurance: Ciaccio Arte
