“Bellissima: Italy and High Fashion 1945-1968“, exhibition curated by Maria Luisa Frisa, Stefano Tonchi and Anna Mattriolo, is not a history of high fashion, but, rather, the attempt to reassemble, through the lens of today, the complex and ever-changing image of Italian fashion, in a choral account made up of many exemplary stories that are the very fabric that will give shape and consistency to the great success of the “made in Italy” label.

From the spectacular creations that lit up the grand balls and foyers of the theaters, accompanied by the glittering expressions of the finest jewelry, to the restrained elegance of the cocktail dresses; from the rigorous black and white graphic look, to the chromatic explosion so typical of the 1960s; from the inventions made for the actresses of the so-called Hollywood on the Tiber, to the results of the sophisticated formal research that was the fruit of the intense collaboration between couturiers and artists.

Works by artists including Carla Accardi, Alberto Burri and Lucio Fontana dialogue with the clothes of Emilio Schuberth and the Sorelle Fontana, of Germana Marucelli and Mila Schön, of Sarli and Simonetta, of Capucci and Gattinoni, of Fendi, Balestra, Biki, Galitzine, Pucci and Valentino.

The exhibition also features the creations of Bulgari, the most famous Italian jeweller around the world, with a selection of unique pieces displaying great experimentation and stylistic innovation.

For more informations, please visit The MAXXI, Museo nazionale delle arti del XXI secolo.

Photo by Regina Relang, 1952, Sorelle Fontana dress. Graphic: Alessandro Gori.Laboratorium.