In fashion and decor, fabrics are the raw material par excellence through which to express a specific identity. The encounter between two absolute protagonists in their respective sectors – Giorgio Armani and Rubelli – could only lead to a partnership with a forceful, decisive character. Just like the resulting collections of fabrics.
Ten years have passed since the first partnership agreement, a long period during which countless Armani/Casa Exclusive Textiles by Rubelli collections have reflected the deep bond between these two worlds, through an identifying style that takes on different types of expressions. “For me, furnishing a space is no different from dressing a person,” Giorgio Armani explains.
This bond has been celebrated in the special project Making of Fabrics – Armani/Casa Exclusive Textiles by Rubelli: a photographic report that narrates the heritage of the two companies, their close synergy, and the variegated, composite results of working together.
The shots capture the creative and productive process that lies behind the development of a collection. Moodboards, as a source of inspiration, actions of contamination that mix colors, fabrics, sketches, offering an exclusive ‘backstage’ view of the Armani/Casa by Rubelli fabrics over the last decade.
Japanese figurative art and its decorative features, always popular in the fashion world, also play a leading role in the creation of these furnishing fabrics. Hence the tsuba (sword sheath) inspires the model Juso: the alternation of the pattern in different proportions creates a geometric effect, brightened by vivid colors like jade green and ruby red.
Nature is clearly the leitmotif of the various offerings: the Grove model is a good example (echoing the world of Armani/Fiori). Orchids are arranged in a contemporary composition of large size to add a modern look to this precious lampas fabric.
Finally, there are direct references to the world of fashion and haute couture: precious embroidery, pleated fabrics, elaborate jacquards, all elements of the Armani style over time. Nanjing places dragonflies and bamboo leaves on a canneté background. The silk jacquard pattern is done with woven effects that simulate embroidery, thanks to the use of a warp with 14,000 silk threads, together with eaves of linen, acetate and viscose.
The project also addresses the production process, wit ha focus on the two headquarters of Rubelli: at Cucciago, in the province of Como (formerly the Zanchi weaving mill in the 1800s), now the fulcrum of the company’s production, still conserving four hand-operated looms from the 1700s alongside the most advanced electronic jacquard machinery; and in Venice, at Ca’ Pisani Rubelli, home of the historic collection and the Rubelli Archives, with over 6000 textile documents dating from the end of the 1500s to the first half of the 20th century.
Photo © Federica Bottoli
