On the occasion of the third international Italian Design Day, dress at your fashionable best and join us for Italian Fashion Reload, a conference addressing the history of Italian fashion in the context of the future of the industry.
The esteemed panel of speakers will include Italo Zucchelli, Fashion Designer and former Creative Director of Calvin Klein; Sara Kozlowski, Director of Education and Professional Development at the Council of Fashion Designers of America and Claudio Marenco Mores, Head of Education of Fashion Design and Design Management at Polimoda, one of Italy’s best fashion institutes. Together, our experts will examine the history of Italian fashion and probe the future of its design in today’s global market. The discussion will be moderated by American Fashion Editor, Joseph De Acetis.
The event will include an exhibition spotlighting eight designs created by Polimoda alumni Andrea Antonelli and Ravenna Osgood.
LOCATION
Embassy of Italy
3000 Whitehaven St NW
Washington, DC 20008
REGISTRATION & PHOTO ID REQUIRED
DOORS OPEN 30 MINUTES PRIOR EVENT START-TIME
Due to new safety regulations, we are not allowed to add extra seats to the auditorium or let anyone stand. A registration is not a guarantee of a seat as these are assigned on a first-come first-served basis. Doors close at event start-time. Ticket availability date subject to change.
RESERVATIONS ACCEPTED EXCLUSIVELY THROUGH EVENTBRITE. NO PHONE OR EMAIL RSVP AVAILABLE
ITALO ZUCCHELLI
Born in La Spezia, the fashion figurehead first moved to Florence in the mid-80s, delving into the study of architecture prior to attending Polimoda. After graduating in 1988, Zucchelli worked for Romeo Gigli and Jil Sander menswear, eventually securing a position at Calvin Klein and leading the men’s collections for over 13 years.
During his tenure at Calvin Klein, Zucchelli designed the men’s luxury line, staged fashion shows worldwide and maintained a leading role in all aspects of the business, from marketing to advertising, public relations and celebrity endorsements. In 2009, the designer won the CFDA Best Menswear Award and most recently was named Menswear Designer of the Year at the first annual Fashion Los Angeles Awards.
Esteemed in the field, he dressed top cultural icons – from Kanye West to Bradley Cooper and Alexander Skarsgaard – he collaborated with a variety of fine artists and designed the wardrobe for Drake and Sam Smith’s American Tours. Described as ‘sublime futurism’ by Tim Blanks, Zucchelli’s style and work at Calvin Klein was often noted for its clean look and unique materials, and still remains critically appraised to this day.
SARA KOZLOWSKI
With over two decades of experience in the industry under her belt, after working for bohemian innovator Anna Sui and 6 years at the helm of her own label Cake, Sara Kozlowski has devoted her career to improving and innovating the fashion education system with an eye to creative diversity, sustainability and authenticity.
Collaborating with leading institutions in the field such as The Parsons Design Lab, the Council of Fashion Designers of America Scholarship program and San Francisco’s Academy of Art University, Kozlowski has reinvented herself as an advocate for academic quality, providing strategic management of established programs and development of new, future, program architectures.
CLAUDIO MARENCO MORES
Claudio Marenco Mores is an architect, and a graduate of IUAV – University Institute of Architecture in Venice. He studied at Oulu University in Finland, the Domus Academy and at IED, specializing in marketing for luxury goods and brand design.
Claudio worked as merchandising and product manager for accessories in global luxury brands such as Calvin Klein Collection and Emilio Pucci up to the beginning of 2015. As resident professor he has been teaching at the Universiy of Bologna, CEDIM in Monterrey, Mexico, the University of Minnesota and other various design and management schools across the world.
Currently Marenco Mores is working at Polimoda as the Head of Education for the department of Fashion Design and Design Management.
JOSEPH DE ACETIS
Joseph DeAcetis is an American Fashion Editor particularly known for his contributions in menswear. As style director at the highly esteemed Forbes Media, Joseph is one of the most recognizable faces in menswear and his style credentials warrant a place in the global luxury menswear industry.
At Forbes, Joseph produces and styles Forbes magazine cover and fashion editorial pages in which capacity he gained valuable experience in the marketing aspect of the fashion industry; This led to a period of extensive collaboration during which DeAcetis researched the rising Latino American luxury menswear market segmentation. The experience provided DeAcetis with an opportunity and vision to develop an aspirational apparel brand with an architecture aligned to the empowerment of social impact.
ABOUT POLIMODA
Polimoda is a fashion school in Florence, Italy. The management staff includes Ferruccio Ferragamo as the President, Danilo Venturi as the Director and Linda Loppa as the Advisor of Strategy and Vision. Founded in 1986 as Politecnio Internazionale della Moda, Polimoda is known worldwide for its independence in thinking and action by combining business and design across all departments. Considered by the Business of Fashion as the best fashion institute in Italy, and amongst the top ten in the world, Polimoda balances the know-how of Italian design and production with an international vision.