Calabria, a land of ancient textile traditions and excellent craftsmanship, is ready to host a unique event aimed at promoting the territory’s creative talents in the fashion scene.
This is Calabria Fashion – Tradition and New Visions, organized by the Premio Carlino d’Argento and the Camera della Moda Artigiana in Calabria, which, on Friday 12 and Saturday 13 December, inside the Museum of Arts of Catanzaro (MARCA) will make the beauty of textile culture shine, between innovation and sustainability.
The curtain will be raised on the event, at 6pm on the first day, by the inauguration of the stands of Calabrian designers who will involve visitors in workshops which, free of charge, will allow them to discover how to combine creative ideas with knowledge of fabrics and packaging techniques.
The experience of master craftsmen representing local fashion houses who enhance traditional techniques, such as Francesco Servidio, an artisan tailor active since the 1980s with his Sartoria Forbici d’Oro, and Gennaro Santillo who carries on the family tradition with the fine artisanal shirt factory Santillo 1970, will meet with the creativity of young fashion designers who explore new languages, innovative materials and digital contaminations, such as Rocco Vitaliano, the youngest Calabrian craftsman, founder of Vitaliano Couture, where he creates sustainable fashion accessories with ancient Calabrian looms. Also present will be Elena Vera Stella, fashion designer and image consultant for successful events and broadcasts, Annachiara Cozza and Elia Anania, students of the Academy of Fine Arts of Catanzaro and winners of the Arcadia Exhibition 2025 – Competition for Young Fashion Designers.
On Saturday 13 December, from 6pm, they will also be the protagonists of a fashion show, that is, an immersive fashion performance which, between lights projected on the historic walls of the Cloister and installations by Giovanna Fabularo, Giusy Agostino and Raffaella Calfa, will bring together collections that tell the beauty, memory and identity of the Calabrian territory, reinterpreted with contemporary sensitivity.
To embellish this visual and emotional journey there will be a talk in which guests from the world of Calabrian art and fashion will take part: the goldsmith and sculptor Antonio Affidato, the fashion designer Salvatore Migale, founder of the Migale Couture brand, Emilio Salvatore Leo, creative director of Lanificio Leo, the oldest textile factory in Calabria, and Franco Arcuri, soul and guide of the Arcuri Cravatte tailoring house. Together they will celebrate artistic expression as an ethical commitment and identity resource for the future of the territory, to the tune of the musician Marco Calabrese.
The evening will end with an After open to the public, which will transform the Chiostro del Marca into a space of sociality, dialogue and celebration. The sounds of the Tchaikovsky Jazz Trio Jazz Trio & Friends – composed of Francesco Cerulo on the piano, Giacomo Cerullo on the electric bass, Guido Rovere on the drums, Mario Stumpo on the clarinet, Michelangelo Mulè on the sax and the voices of Maria Carolina Luzzo and Diletta Carrozzino – will accompany the tasting of bubbles and finger food inspired by Calabrian specialities, curated by the chef Valentina Amato, the ice cream maker Ivan Procopio and the pastry chef Antonio De Santis.