The Milan catwalks emptied, the
fashion world is now getting ready for the Expo and its
visitors, 8.5 million of whom have already bought their tickets.
Sealing the collaboration between fashion designers and the
Expo was the presence of the international event's commissioner,
Giuseppe Sala, at Giorgio Armani's - the Expo's 'special
ambassador' - fashion show.
He will be the one to open the Expo on April 30 with a
large show of his Privé Haute Couture line, from the Paris
runway, and the inauguration of Silos Armani.
Armani on Monday spoke to Milan mayor Giuliano Pisapia
about the condition of the area that was Nestlé's and which will
become a museum and archive for the designer, open to the public
and other projects.
"Outside there is only a bunch of scaffolding, but work is
underway inside," the designer said, noting that "making a
museum seems easy, but it is another small factory and I go very
slowly with new things."
Armani has put forth a great deal of effort for the Expo,
and on the same day as the inauguration of the Silos is a
fashion show that - he announced - all his colleagues in the
fashion industry will be invited.
While being Expo ambassador is "a big honor", he noted that
what was important was that "together we can do good things in
Milan, especially if we don't go around 'insulting' each other".
A good example of this sort of collaborative spirit can be
seen in the restoration of Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II,
arranged and paid - to the tune of three million euros each - by
Versace and Prada, with a contribution from Feltrinelli as well.
The 13-month restoration of its interior covered a surface area
of 14,000 meters and will be completed in April in time for the
opening of the Expo.
Due to be ready in the spring is also the new space for
Fondazione Prada, with the renovation of the Largo Isarco area
and of some industrial buildings dating back to the early
twentieth century, as well as the construction of three new
buildings (21,783 square meters) that the renowned Dutch
architect Rem Koolhas has been entrusted with.
The designer Laura Biagiotti, also from Rome, has instead
lent Giacomo Balla's 'Genio Futurista', made for the 1925 Paris
Universal Exposition. The oil-on-canvas painting is part of the
Fondazione Biagiotti Cigna collection, which includes over 200
works by the artist and has left the foundation only once
before. Biagiotti lent it to the Expo because "it will be an
extraordinary event where there will be space also for spiritual
nourishment as the art suggests, as well as to to deal with
nutrition-related issues".
Tod's group has instead promoted and produced 'Stardust',
an exhibition on the photographer David Bailey that runs through
June 2 at PAC.
"With this large exhibition," a group statement reads,
"Tod's is offering a large contribution to the program of
scheduled events for Expo 2015 with the intention of promoting
and supporting Milan, and Italy in general, as important
reference points in the international culture circuit."
The schedule of September fashion shows also aims - said
Jane Reeve, chief executive of the governing body of Italian
style, the Camera della Moda - for a more "international air" to
it, with an extra day on the catwalks that will be set aside for
Chinese designers.
The Camera della Moda will coordinate a series of events
linked to fashion and open to the public, a taste of which was
given by the inauguration of an exhibition on Via Monte
Napoleone of 24 manhole covers designed by big-name designers,
and the Fashion Remake show, which focuses on recycling and is
currently at the Expo Gate.
Last but not least, the Expo has inspired a capsule
collection of clothing by the Tuscan brand Landi Fancy: T-shirts
and wind jackets with Milan's most well-known attractions on it,
an underground map and 'Expo' printed on them.
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