The strength of fragility, the dichotomy of being a woman. This is how BABY was born; a “female” project, delicate but not weak, brave but not aggressive.
The tulle, apparently fragile and ethereal, was chosen precisely to depict an invisible and gentle armor.
The editorial tells a story made of bonds, of paths that are interrupted but then start again, of bodily and emotional experiences that unite.
Photographer: Camilla Ferrero @camilla.ferrero
Fashion Designer: Alessia Diegoli @cynara_sartoria
Makeup Artist: Sara Zampirollo @makecoloursup
Stylist/Illustrator: Maria Martini @mar_ameo
Model: Sofia Ling @sofiajjlingTell us something about yourself
I'm Alessia, founder of CYNARA Sartoria Contemporanea. I started by going to the workroom of a stylist and seamstress who taught me the basics of sewing and
of modeling. When I realized it was my way, I bought a sewing machine at a vintage market and started working on my designs on the home kitchen table. I discovered the world of fabrics and colors, I did tests after tests, until I arrived at my style. I therefore decided to specialize in modeling, cutting and sewing at the Academy of Fashion and Couture of Turin.
I'm Maria, illustrator and graphic designer. I've been drawing almost always, but before I didn't realize I was doing it. I have not had a first training artistic, perhaps because neither I nor my family saw a potential in drawing to invest in. So I did it, but for me and that's it. I studied graphics first in Rome and then in Madrid. But as I got older, I felt a stronger desire to have to do something "artistic", something related to aesthetics, something adherent to the beautiful. Then a few years ago someone "saw" me and then I saw myself too. I draw women, indeed females, because it is the only territory I really know.
You guys created an amazing collaboration, and it’s something very different from the usual. How did you two meet? And what was the foundation of your identification with each other?
Ours was a personal meeting rather than a working one. Our ways crossed thanks to the fate, divided and then met again in a moment of personal difficulty in which we were important and necessary for each other. In addition to recognizing ourselves as souls, it was evident to us that our personal works also spoke with the same alphabet.
The feminine themes dealt with by Maria and her delicate aesthetic sensibility with almost hinted graphic signs, but at the same time incisive for the themes represented, perfectly combine with the delicate but strong feminine ideal to which Cynara is inspired, the choice of fabrics, the reference color palette and her clothes which are a little dreamy and ethereal.
How does the process of mixing the illustrations with the fashion concepts of the designs work?
The illustrations embroidered on the dresses create a bridge between the instinctive gesture of drawing the lines and the act of hand embroidery. The choice of tulle best represents the dichotomy between delicacy and strength, and the red thread, the protagonist of the collection, sanctions even more this ours bond, passing from the hand of one to the hand of the other, from one woman to the other. The illustrated and embroidered subjects are a look at women's experiences from different perspectives: labor and birth, expectation and resistance, care for stop without condemning yourself .
What is the main goal of this collaboration? What do you guys want to achieve with it?
Our collaboration born from a mutual deep respect for our personal work , from an aesthetic sensitivity that unites us, from curiosity for experimentation, from wanting to give ourselves. But above all there was the will to do something real and concrete, the desire to give shape to this meeting, of to represent the bond that has been mutual care, listening, attention. The main objective of any artistic project is always to communicate andsharing emotions, recognizing them and in the lives of others and feeling united and connected in this.
What is your biggest influence when it comes to working with art?
We both have different influences coming from our specific work, illustration and fashion. We are inspired by nature and its colors, we are very attentive to the female universe, to its delicacy in forms. Women are a great source of inspiration for us, they are extremely elegant and strong, determined and sweet. We are apparently different, we have diferent backgrounds, but we both like things delicate but full of strength and we try to bring these characteristics in our works, on fabric and paper.
How is art an important part of your lives?
Art is everything, both as a user and as a creator. It looks like something very abstract but it's actually everywhere. The two of us live in a splendid city, Turin (Italy), a magical, elegant place, rich in architectural and naturalistic aesthetic cues ... Today everything is very usable, any form of art. It reaches everyone and it is a wonderful thing, but there is a danger that it will pass too quickly and that you do not give the right pay attention to the work behind it, which does not deepen to understand, which slips away quickly along with many other things.
What were your expectations for the collaboration? Did it turned out as expected?
A project that comes from an emotional push always clashes with logics that have nothing emotional about it. But both in our work experience we have learned to trust and to know that projects do not always explode immediately, but that if they have solid foundations will sooner or later find the right opportunity to be fully realized. It started almost as a game, at a time when we were strongly supporting each other. Then when it all materialized, when the clothes took shape, the embroideries appeared, it was amazing and extremely exciting.
What were the biggest challenges when starting the collaboration? And how did you overcame it?
It is said that friendship, and especially female friendship, does not facilitate the work ; that there is competition, envy and little solidarity. We wanted dispel this preconception by choosing to work on this project with an entire female team, because we believe very much in the energy and synergy that only we women know how to create. And it was actually all magical !
And for closure, what would be your advice to young artists who are just starting to discover their passion for art?
To have confidence in themselves and in their abilities, without losing humility and the need to learn. To ask for help, without embarrassment. To look for one's own identity, without fear of one's own limits and to focus on your own nuances, differences, and details that distinguish him. To always keep the curiosity, towards the world the people and the nature. To love what you are doing, even when the desired results do not come.
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