Roberto Capucci (1930-Present)
Roberto Capucci is a respected Italian designer who is best known for his contemporary designs and his amazing usage of form, color, and materials. Looking at one of his designs will simply awe you and make you want to observe more. He refers to his garments as “a study in form,” because he dislikes the typical silhouettes and likes creating his own. He uses inspiration from art, architecture, and nature and it is clearly visible in his work. I chose Capucci because I believe that he broke boundaries to create not just amazing pieces of clothing, but amazing art work as well.
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Roberto Capucci was born in Rome, Italy on the 2nd of December 1930 which makes him 82 this year. Capucci got his first big exposure when he was only twenty years old. A businessman held a couture fashion show and was going to showcase five designs of Capucci, but other couturiers felt up-stage and would not allow Capucci to display these designs. The press heard of this and insisted on seeing Capucci gowns which sold instantly. This is where he started to be known as a “boy wonder.” He opened his own house in 1950 in Italy and then a couture salon in Paris in 1962. He was awarded the Medal of Gold of Venice in 1956 and later on received a remarkable admiration comment from Christian Dior. Capucci was referred to as the “Givenchy of Rome” and still remains with that title today. Although he has received an abundant of high praise for his work, he actually hated publicity and even recognition. He retired from running his couture house in 1980 at the age of fifty, but kept designing frequently. In 1995 at the age of 65, Capucci started to teach in China at the University of Beigin, Xi’an and Shanghai. He still occasionally participates in fashion shows and events to this day.
Roberto Capucci was greatly influenced by rationalism, shapes, pop-art and costume design. He thought of himself as an artist and loathed being called a designer. He once said,
“I don't consider myself a tailor or a designer but an artisan looking for ways of creating, looking for ways to
express a fabric to use it as a sculptor uses clay.”
His designs were innovative and would follow the body, sometimes exaggerating it. He would manipulate fabrics to create illusions on the women's body using materials that are rarely used to make clothing. Capucci cared about how his clothes would look in motion more than anything. He loved the way his dresses would flow and the way all the colors form together when a women would wear his designs. He gained the reputation of being the master of silhouette and color because of this design style he uses. He was inspired by geometric shapes and would twist them into his own designs and make it into a garment. He created dresses for an abstract woman, one that you would rarely meet. His designs often made the wearer secondary compared to the gown. (The pictures below are from the Art Into Fashion exhibit at the Philadelphia Museum of Art).
Roberto Capucci was greatly influenced by rationalism, shapes, pop-art and costume design. He thought of himself as an artist and loathed being called a designer. He once said,
“I don't consider myself a tailor or a designer but an artisan looking for ways of creating, looking for ways to
express a fabric to use it as a sculptor uses clay.”
His designs were innovative and would follow the body, sometimes exaggerating it. He would manipulate fabrics to create illusions on the women's body using materials that are rarely used to make clothing. Capucci cared about how his clothes would look in motion more than anything. He loved the way his dresses would flow and the way all the colors form together when a women would wear his designs. He gained the reputation of being the master of silhouette and color because of this design style he uses. He was inspired by geometric shapes and would twist them into his own designs and make it into a garment. He created dresses for an abstract woman, one that you would rarely meet. His designs often made the wearer secondary compared to the gown. (The pictures below are from the Art Into Fashion exhibit at the Philadelphia Museum of Art).
Critical Analysis
The 1950’s was an exciting period with ground-breaking new inventions and new outlook on living. It was a time when the world finally recovered from World War II so people got the chance to enjoy themselves and indulge in leisure once again. The 1950’s was the time for fun, individualism, and rock and roll. Elvis Presley and Marilyn Monroe were popular icons at the time and set the tone for the decade. Television was finally created and had popular TV shows such as, I Love Lucy, Mickey Mouse Club, etc. New toys and science were created as well such as Barbie dolls, comics, and NASA was organized at this time. Pop art also started becoming very popular, using different sorts of media mediums like television, photography, comics, and cinemas to advertise about their art work. Which perhaps explains why Roberto Capucci was intensely inspired by pop-art and costume designs. He was a fan of pop-art culture and created many dresses that used the colors you would see in a pop-art painting. Cinema became a huge phenomenon especially with the first 3D movie that came out during the 1950’s. Roberto Capucci loved to make elaborate dresses that you would see in cinemas on Hollywood stars. He captured the glamor and the artistic style of the 1950’s and created incredible pieces.
His outfits are abstract, colorful, vibrant, different, and extravagant. Capucci did not look to other designers for inspiration, but he would look around at nature, science, and geometry for inspiration instead. That is what is truly amazing about Capucci because he based his designs on purely his own interpretations of the things around him. He often uses colors and materials that reflect parts of nature whether it be water or flowers to create a look that is completely nature inspired. On one of his designs, he even went outside to grab stones from a pond and then applied it to his dress. A picture of this exact garment is shown below.
His outfits are abstract, colorful, vibrant, different, and extravagant. Capucci did not look to other designers for inspiration, but he would look around at nature, science, and geometry for inspiration instead. That is what is truly amazing about Capucci because he based his designs on purely his own interpretations of the things around him. He often uses colors and materials that reflect parts of nature whether it be water or flowers to create a look that is completely nature inspired. On one of his designs, he even went outside to grab stones from a pond and then applied it to his dress. A picture of this exact garment is shown below.
Roberto Capucci is an icon because his
sculptural gowns and voluminous dresses showed fashion that there are no
limits. Capucci literally took art and produced it into a couture dress. His
innovation of shapes and materials used for his garments set a new bar for
other designs who can only attempt to match it. The dedication in his design are evident, with all the structural details he puts into his designs. He always tried to bring something new and different in his pieces that no one has seen before. His garments with unbelievable
details inspired many and even landed him his own exhibits in museums. This
forever shows that the Roberto Capucci name is an icon.
Analysis of Future Trends
Roberto Capucci has inspired many worldwide during his peak of success and even now. Designers are inspired by Capucci use of Italian designs, couture silhouettes, innovative use of materials, nature influence, and the list goes on. Designers like Tommaso Aquilano and Roberto Rimondi even put on a runway show for their Milan Summer Season 2010 full of inspirations from Italian designers Pino Lancetti, Andrea Odicini, and the Givenchy of Rome himself Roberto Capucci.
Aquilano and Rimondi used
techniques alike Roberto Capucci such as couture elements like oversized ruffles,
bubble silhouettes, incredible patterns, and trimmings. All the garments were
also hand-sewn with luxurious fabrics. It is clear where Capucci’s influences
are especially in the extravagant colors and patterns. Some of these garments
also reflect nature like Capucci’s designs. Left is earth, middle is water, and
the far right is fire.
Capucci has multiple significant trends with his couture garments such as the usage of bright colors, different materials that add fun textures to the garment, and also extreme silhouettes. Capucci was able to use the right timing of the decade to introduce his colorful garments because before then, mostly neutrals were used. Many designers shortly picked up after this and quickly adapted his design elements into theirs. His extravagant silhouettes are what will always be Capucci’s signature. Many designers could never even dream up the multiple different silhouettes that Capucci invented and now designers know that they can create almost anything after seeing Capucci’s work.
Capucci has multiple significant trends with his couture garments such as the usage of bright colors, different materials that add fun textures to the garment, and also extreme silhouettes. Capucci was able to use the right timing of the decade to introduce his colorful garments because before then, mostly neutrals were used. Many designers shortly picked up after this and quickly adapted his design elements into theirs. His extravagant silhouettes are what will always be Capucci’s signature. Many designers could never even dream up the multiple different silhouettes that Capucci invented and now designers know that they can create almost anything after seeing Capucci’s work.
As
I look through my closet, I personally do not have a lot of Capucci’s inspired
clothing. I like fit and a sleek look as Capucci’s style is the opposite. I do own a tutu skirt though that reminds me of Capucci's design elements because it has layers of ruffles and creates an exaggerated silhouette when worn. We can see Capucci's influences in couture is still alive today though because more and more often do we see extreme silhouettes on the runway. Not many designers stick to typical A-lines anymore and like to use the geometric structures that Capucci created before. Therefore, this is why Capucci is one of the most influential designers to the fashion industry.
Citations
- "Fashion Model Directory." Roberto Capucci. Fashion Model Directory, 10 2012. Web. 11 Nov 2012.
- Freeman, Ellen. "The Fashion Spot." Art Into Fashion: a Roberto Capucci Retrospective. The Fashion Spot, 19 2011. Web. 11 Nov
of-art>.
- "Style Sight." Aquilano.Rimondi. Style Sight, 29 2009. Web. 11 Nov 2012. <http://blog.stylesight.com/runway/aquilano-rimondi-2>.
- Laneri, Raquel. "Forbes." Fashion And Art: Alexander McQueen And Roberto Capucci. Forbes, 04 2011. Web. 11 Nov 2012.
- Catton, Pia. "Feting a Fashion 'Sculptor' ." The Wall Street Journal. The Wall Street Journal, 12 2011. Web. 13 Nov 2012.
- Roberto Capucci. Film. 20 Nov 2012. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5eyDMT2WpYI>.
- Warhol, Andy. Marilyn Monroe. N.d. Kalamazoo Institute of ArtsWeb. 30 Nov 2012.
- The 18 Most Gorgeous Gowns from Paris Haute Couture Week Fall 2012. N.d. The Fashion SpotWeb. 30 Nov 2012.
-fall-2012/?slide=10>.
- , ed. "Roberto Capucci: Art into Fashion ." Philadelphia Museum of Art. Philadelphia Museum of Art, 5 2011. Web. 29 Oct 2012.