A History of Fashion, Design & Art
By Ornella Cirillo PhD
Pulished by SKIRA, £55
A beautiful new album chronicling 65 years of “Made in Italy” excellence.
Established in 1952 in Naples, the Valentino brand is a leading name in leather and a legendary manufacturer of shoes, accessories and clothing. Now, a new book from Skira Editore recounts the Valentino story, from the early 1900s, when Mario’s father Vincenzo made shoes praised by the Savoys, through the end of the century, when top models contributed to the brand’s renown and photographers like Robert Mapplethorpe and Helmut Newton cemented Mario Valentino’s reputation and design philosophy as a true form of art.
This luxurious book catalogues Valentino’s rise from a small shop in the heart of Naples to one of fashion’s most well-known names. Alongside some 200 colour illustrations, the book presents precious documents collected in Valentino’s archives as well as vivid descriptions of some of the most important moments in fashion history. Mario Valentino offers an extraordinary adventure and the recognition of the impact of Naples and Italy on the designer’s work as well as his continued influence on fashion and design today. In the words of its author, Dr Ornella Cirillo, “We cannot speak of just the influence of Mario Valentino in the world of fashion, but of the continuity of his firm in the Made in Italy global label. I believe this book can give a correct identity to this Italian historical brand.”
Ornella Cirillo PhD, is adjunct professor of Contemporary Fashion History, and a researcher at the Università della Campania “Luigi Vanvitelli.”
When asked about drove her to undertake such a project, she answered, “My principle objective was to return to Mario Valentino the value of his appointment beginning from Naples, considered a marginal city in the field of the fashion. The number of documents discovered and the collaborations with artists (Rubartelli, Eula, Lopez, Alvedon Newton…) and stylists (Muriel Grateau, Paco Rabanne, Karl Lagerfeld, Giorgio Armani, Gianni Versace, Claude Montana…) of tall merit proved that actually, Naples was at the heart of international fashion!”
Dr Cirillo continued,
“In the years that researches have written about the history of Italian fashion, Naples has always been neglected. I work and I write to restore to the credit that is owed to Neapolitan creatives.”
I-M: When did you start making game boards?
Nadja Swarovski: Aged just 25, Nadja joined the 100 year old family business and changed it forever. In the last 22 years she has brought Swarovski to the very top of fashion and contemporary design, launching many an illustrious career in the process, like that of Alexander McQueen or Hussein Chalayan.
Karen Adler: After 20 years in the film industry, in 2015 Karen joined the 4th generation of Adlers working in the jewellery family business. Her passion and creativity, have been instrumental in taking the brand to the next level of global success, together with her cousin Allen Adler and his wife Daisy Adler.
Maria Hatzistefanis: Maria says that getting fired for her banking job at the age of 25 was the best thing that ever happened to her. A couple of years later she had founded Rodial, a cosmetic business that today is worth £100million, and she did it all without a single penny from investors.
Carolanne Minashi: As Global Head of Diversity & Inclusion at UBS, Carolanne is focused on fixing the system rather than fixing the women. She has been driving a cultural change agenda to have a greater number of Women in Senior Leadership roles. She is a member of the Women’s Leadership Board at the Women and Public Policy unit at Harvard Kennedy School, a Chartered Fellow of the British Chartered Institute for Personnel and Development.
Justine Waddell: As Director of Kino Klassika, Justine helps develop shared expertise between archivists and curators in the UK and Russia and Eastern Europe, building relationships with fundraising bodies and sponsors and encouraging people who love cinema, literature, music, and language from the arts and business communities in the UK, Russia and CIS, to share their cultural knowledge at events.
Hager Jemel PhD: Hager is an Associate Professor of Management at EDHEC and Director of EDHEC Open, Leadership Innovation Centre for Diversity & Inclusion. She has been Director of the Pre-Master Year for the EDHEC Master in Management since June 1st 2017. She holds a Doctorate in Management Sciences from Institut d’Ad- ministration des Entreprises de Lille. She has 13 years of experience in Management lecturing and research, and commands strong expertise in the CSR and diversity fields.
Eve de Haan: Eve has a degree in Theology and has explored many fields
Kim Vanessa Kortlepel: She is not even 25 and Kim has already
Hazel Hurley: Her photography is enigmatic and provocative. It makes you smile and it makes you think, and in occasions, it makes you cringe. At just 22 years of age, Hazel has already participated in a variety of exhibitions including shows at Henley Festival, Café Royal and Freud Bar… Hazel Hurley is an artist who knows who she is and perfectly reflects in her art the young culture of the times we live in.
Beth Cullen-Kerridge: Beth is a celebrated sculptor who has firmly established her singular vision upon the contemporary art scene. She honed her craft producing works for Edwardo Paolozzi, Elisabeth Frink and Alberto Giacometti, before becoming a studio assistant for Mike Bolus and Sir Antony Caro. She has worked on projects with Sir Norman Foster on the Millennium Bridge, Richard Rodgers at The Tate, and a number of shows at the Venice Biennale. Her recent 16-foot-high Carrera ‘Dhow Sail’ marble sculpture installation for Dubai Opera received worldwide critical acclaim and in November 2017 Beth was awarded the ‘Global art prize for sculpture’.
Alexandra Llewellyn: After years of studying and training, Alexandra opened her Design Studio in 2010, in which she creates custom-made games tables and boards, all made in the UK and all of which can be personalised or bespoke commissioned. Alexandra’s designs are owned by clients such as Sir Richard Branson, Elle Macpherson, Mark Ronson, Paloma Faith… and even Royalty! She fell in love with backgammon as a child in Cairo… as she strolled through the streets with her step-grandfather.
Day-z: Enigmatic urban artist Day-z combines techniques learned from the Masters with current culture to create a signature style that fuses street and fine art. Some of Day-z’s more mischievous antics include sticking up pieces on the Tate Modern and taking on parking wardens with her celebrated ‘parking ticket’ sticker. Day-Z had a hugely successful first solo show in 2017 selling the vast majority of all of her original works and prints.
Dame Jessica Ennis-Hill: In her 20 years career as an athlete, Jessica
Kamin Mohammadi: Kamin Mohammadi is an author, journalist, broadcaster and public speaker. Born in Iran, she and her family moved to the UK during the 1979 Iranian Revolution. Her journalism has been nominated for an Amnesty Human Rights in Journalism award in the UK, and for a National Magazine Award by the American Society of Magazine Editors in the US. She has authored two books and has spoken on Iranian issues at universities, conferences and peace events. An avid commentator, she has appeared on many radio programmes in the Uk and abroad, taken part in the BBC television documentary Iranian Enough? and helped to write and co-present the BBC World Service’s three-part radio documentary Children of The Revolution.
Sophie Christiansen: Born with cerebral palsy, at 6 years of age Sophie
Inger Andersen: As Director General IUCN, Inger brings passion for conservation and sustainability with more than 30 years of experience in international development economics, environmental sustainability and policy-making, as well as in designing and implementing projects and generating on-the-ground impact. She has played a key role in supporting riparian countries on international water management and hydro-diplomacy. Prior to joining IUCN, she held various leadership roles at the World Bank and at United Nations.
Dr Vreni Häussermann: As as a marine zoologist, Vreni has spent the last 20 years of her life studying the biodiversity of the Chilean Patagonia aiming at its sustainable use and conservation. Since 2003, she is the Scientific Director of the Huinay Scientific Field Station in Patagonia. Part of Dr. Häussermann’s vast amount of work is to advise both NGOs and the Chilean government on matters
Caroline Scheufele: Caroline joined the family business, Chopard, straight after finishing her studies. She brought change and innovation, which in the last years culminated in making Chopard the most sustainable jewellery brand in the world, working with the Alliance for Responsible Mining (ARM), using only Fairmined certified ethically sourced gold as well as sustainably sourced opals and emeralds. She founded the Green Carpet Challenge as a benchmark against which brands can measure themselves, showing a commitment to ethical social and environmental behaviour in the workplace and through supply chains.
Olga Murray: Olga founded the Nepal Youth Foundation in 1990 to help impoverished children in Nepal and free young girls from slavery.
Suzanne Ruggles: Suzanne founded Full Circle Fund Therapies with the
Lise Pape: Straight after graduation, Lise immersed herself in a
Christiana Longarini: Christiana is a sensible, sensitive, family oriented woman with a highly developed sense of ethics, solidarity and welfare. Known professionally for her innovative and creative approach to business, she was called to run the VSY shipyard which she transformed in a very short time into an ethical construction specialist, leading the sustainability argument in the yacht building industry.
Koo Stark: Koo Stark is a writer, teacher, actress and most importantly, a photographer. She is also a long-time student of HH the Dalai Lama, whose friendship and teachings gave Koo the insight to meditate on the potential of capturing the beauty of life through photography and using the medium as a means of non-verbal communication. Harassed by paparazzi for many years, she initiated legal actions that would end up in the creation of the law on privacy in this country.
Harriet Harman MP: She is the longest-serving female MP (since 1982) and has been politics’ most prominent champion for women’s rights, introducing the National Childcare Strategy, All Women Shortlists, the Equality Act and changing the law on domestic violence.
