Corneliani has renewed its
commitment to sustainability by
collaborating with an emerging Italian
artist, entrusting him with the task of
imagining the setting for the new
spring/summer 2022 collection.
The synergy between fashion and art
takes shape in the immersive
installation “Forests of Thread”,
created by Federico de Lorentis and
composed of about 300km of silk and
cotton thread. The artistic operation
provides the exclusive use of recycled
and waste material, thus generating a
virtuous circle at 360°.
The sustainable installation confirms
Corneliani’s commitment to renewing
its social and environmental
commitment consciously and
responsibly and reiterates the support
for art and culture that the company
has always promoted.
Following moments of crisis, such as
the recent pandemic experience, a
collaboration between art and business
is fundamental as the prime mover of a
two-way creative and entrepreneurial
rebirth.
The same frescoes that adorn Palazzo
Durini Caproni in Taliedo, Corneliani’s
headquarters, considered among the
most relevant and innovative cycles of
secular painting in Milan, were painted
following the tragic events caused by
the plague of 1630.
“Foreste di Filo” is Corneliani’s first
step in this new artistic union, as well
as the natural setting to present
CIRCLE, the capsule collection with
low environmental impact, featuring
garments in natural and organic fibers,
with a consequent reduction in CO2
emissions and waste.
With this project, the company designs
a new “circle” of values and products
based on responsibility and
transparency in every phase of the
manufacturing cycle. It’s a symbol of
responsibility towards people
and the environment, proving that aesthetics
can also embrace ethics.
Like any other industrial sector, fashion
cannot avoid environmental
responsibility, which becomes an
imminent urgency to which the entire
economic-productive system must
strive because the planet needs
alternative futures, unprecedented
scenarios, possible only through the
creation of great new proactive
narratives.
‘FORESTS OF THREAD’ , 2021
The artist Federico de Lorentis (Galatina, 1994) uses a “site-specific” approach; therefore, he conceives the installation on-site and ad hoc for the location and the public that will experience it.
In this case, the artist, amazed by the extraordinary beauty of Palazzo Durini Caproni in Taliedo (Corneliani’s headquarters), decides to undertake a work that respects the historical and formal memory of the place.
The installation dialogues perfectly with the balance and monumentality of the 17th century Lombard architecture and at the same time evokes the profession of Gian Giacomo Durini, a silk merchant who in 1573 inaugurated the family fortune.
Federico de Lorentis, therefore, creates an immersive installation composed of over 300km of silk and cotton thread, painstakingly spun and suspended in vertical strips from the high ceiling of the main hall. What fascinates the artist is the deeply ambiguous nature of the thread.
On the one hand, it is characterized by a strong and extremely durable essence. It is the result of ancient techniques and used since the beginning to sew the skins and protect them from the cold. On the other hand, the thread appears extremely light and ephemeral, floating and generating delicate and soft relationships with space.
In this installation, the artist plays with the thread’s enigmatic and dual nature
to trigger a seduction mechanism.
The shape attracts the public, and the range of colours used to compose the strips and, seized by a sense of primordial curiosity, wants to touch the cotton and silk filaments.
Today, environmental protection is often the subject of “sloganization”, so the artist decides to propose a new critical approach to the theme of sustainability.
Federico de Lorentis conceived an installation made up solely and exclusively of worn-out yarn discarded by Corneliani and its suppliers, which is re-assembled and enhanced by the artist to promote a respectful attitude towards the planet that hosts us.
The artist has worked by weaving a series of unprecedented relationships between Corneliani’s parent company and the entire production chain, a sort of collective word-of-mouth to help find the expired and “throw-away”thread, because a sustainable attitude always stems from the sincere reflections that are closest to us, before touching on the significant issues that afflict the planet.