Erasmus+ 6
THE DEVELOPMENT OF ITALIAN FASHION
Clothing in Italy has become the most fashionable in Europe since the 11th century and powerful cities of the time, such as Venice, Milan, Florence, Naples, Vicenza and Rome began to produce robes, jewelry, textiles, shoes, fabrics, ornaments and elaborate dresses. Italian fashion reached its peak during the Renaissance. Art, music, education, finance and philosophy flourished in Italy, and alongside””, Italian fashion designs became immensely popular, especially those worn by the Medicis in Florence. The fashion of Queen Catherine de' Medici of France were considered amongst the most fashionable in Europe. Italian fashion in the 15th and 16th centuries was mainly influenced by the art of the time, especially by the masterpieces of Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, Raphael and Botticelli.
Italian designs were well known for their extravagance, and their expensive accessories, such as velvets, brocades, ribbons and jewels. Also, Italian fashion for ladies changed dramatically around 1460, where skirts were gathered or pleated, and would often be split at the front and the sides to show a sleeved under dress. During the Italian Renaissance, men wore closely fitted waistcoats underneath pleated overcoats called “giornea”, which had wide, puffy mutton sleeves and were often made from brocade. They wore different kinds of hats, ranging from caps to berets. They also had an overcoat called “cioppa”. Its lining was of a different colour than the main fabric, which was
a feature of Italian Renaissance. They also wore hose or tights to emphasize their lower bodies. As hair styles, anything from short to shoulder-length hair was common; it was often curled inwards. Women's dress consisted of fitted garments worn underneath a belted dress which was also called “giornea”. Unlike the men's version, the women's reached the ground and covered their feet. Women's giorneas, originally evolved from the overcoat, had separate skirts and bodices. The skirts were tight at the waist and the lower part of the dress was often pleated. They were cut at the front, and in later years at the sides, to display the rich undergarments.
Underneath the “giornea” women wore a dress called “gamurra”, which was a high-waisted long dress which could have detachable sleeves. The under dress worn underneath was a simple linen dress called camicia. Men and women would wear outer clothes with detachable and often slashed sleeves of varied designs. Rich people would own many different pairs of sleeves to match with their overcoats and dresses. The Renaissance was a turning point for people's attitude regarding clothes and their appearances. People had a desire to wear tighter fitted clothes to emphasize the body shape, particularly in men's clothing. Merchants expanded the market for items of clothing, creating accessories such as hats, hairnets, bags, or gloves.
The spread of mirrors led to people becoming more interested in their self-image, and people were increasingly trying to look good and care about how they appeared to others. Prior 1500, clerical dress was arbitrary, then in 1565 Milan, black became the accepted color in Italy, while white remained as the pope’s biretta color, scarlet for the cardinal’s, purple for the bishop’s and black for other clerics. In the 17th century, Italian fashion fell into decline when the designs of Spanish, English and French courts took the lead. In France, French fashion became the most popular in Europe. Despite this decline, however, there was some fashion and clothing activity, especially in Rome, Milan and Florence. In the mid-19th century cheaper silk began to be imported to Milan from Asia and the black death damaged silk and wine production. More land was subsequently given over to industrialization. Textile production was followed by metal and mechanical and furniture manufacture. Some of the first Italian fashion houses such as Bulgari, Prada, Gucci and Ferragamo were founded in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It was not until the 1950s and 60s that Italian fashion retook its position of importance in the fashion world. The excellence and quality of Italian machinery for the textile industry as well as the technological innovations resulting from Italian research, state-of-the-art Italian made products, but with a watchful eye constantly on eco-sustainability, make Italian textile highly competitive. However, Italian companies will be coordinated by ICE - the Italian Trade Promotion Agency, in collaboration with ACIMIT - the Association of Italian Textile Manufacturers the professional body representing the textile machinery sector to make the textile industry sustainable.