The most iconic collections in the history of fashion often display strong links with the past. As a designer it is indeed possible to find ideas and inspirations in the rich tapestry of art and history, and reimagine them in a wholly new light. Through this creative process, you often learn to observe the subtlest of details, appreciate them in their fullness, and then skillfully reinvent them in a refined and innovative way.
Fascinated by art and history, Vivienne Westwood, for instance, often turned to inspirations borrowed from these disciplines in her designs. Westwood's first collection, “Pirates” (1981), fused her passion for modern touches with her studies from volumes such as Wolfgang Bruhn and Max Tilke's Kostümwerk (A pictorial history of costume) to create her assemblages for the future. In other cases such as her "Portrait" collection (A/W 1990-91), the designer featured palettes borrowed from the landscapes in the background of Joshua Reynolds and Thomas Gainsborough's paintings and also replicated François Boucher's painting "Daphnis and Chloe" on her corsets.
Among the painters that may provide fashion designers with some intriguing inspirations there is Francesco Boneri, better known as Cecco del Caravaggio (1580 - 1630), an Italian artist who lived in the late 16th and early 17th centuries.
Boneri probably met Caravaggio in Rome, becoming a sort of factotum for him: he learnt from him painting techniques, but also the use of weapons (some historians state indeed that he frequented taverns and was used to engage in physical fights without hesitation).
While little is known about his life (studies of this enigmatic figure started in the 1990s) Cecco was probably more than just a pupil for Caravaggio. In 1650, an English painter visiting Rome, Richard Symonds, noted that in Caravaggio's "Amor Vincit Omnia", the master portrayed "Checco del Caravaggio (...) his own boy or servant", explicitly adding "that laid with him."
While remaining closely linked to the master's ways, Cecco represents one of the most original voices in European Caravaggism: it is difficult to make an overall evaluation of the painter as works attributed to him are not signed, yet they often feature religious or mythological scenes in a naturalistic and dramatic style that verged towards realism.
Cecco often used ambiguous and erotic references in his works and was particularly skilled in portraying with remarkable precision the details of the costumes of his characters.
One tailoring trick - the slashing technique - is a sort of recurrent feature in Cecco's paintings. This decorative technique consisted in making regular, spaced cuts into the fabric of a garment, hat or shoe.
It is actually not so rare to spot in museums such as London's V&A garments - from women's gowns to man's doublets in silk, velvet, or brocade - adorned with cut-outs or slashes that revealed the contrasting colours and textures of the fabric underneath.
The effect created by these cut-outs was known as "puff and slash" and it was a popular trend during the Renaissance period. The technique allowed for greater flexibility and comfort in movement, as well as providing an opportunity for the wearer to show off their wealth and style. In modern fashion, Vivienne Westwood used this trick in her "Cut Slash...and Pull" collection (S/S 91) and in the menswear designs for her Pitti presentation in July 1990.
Cecco often portrayed characters wearing costumes characterised by this technique: in his portrait "Fabbricante di strumenti musicali" (The musical instrument maker), a young man clenching a whistle or a ball between his lips and holding with his left hand a coin or a metal jingle from a tambourine, wears a garment that features this technique. The young man on the left in the painting "Il tributo della moneta" (The Tribute money), also wears a form-fitting doublet with a decorative motif and slashes also return in the sleeves of the voluminously grand and opulent gown donned by the woman in the "Sibilla eritrea" painting. The flute player in the eponymous painting (circa 1615-1620) wears instead a doublet accentuated with gracefully scalloped edges, adorned with tasteful black trimming along the sleeves and collar.
Cecco's paintings can therefore serve as a treasure trove of inspirations, providing ideas to enrich a design and create harmonious blends of past and present. If you want to discover more about the artist there is currently an exhibition - "Cecco del Caravaggio. L'allievo modello" (until 4th June; the title is a sort of pun on the fact that he was an apprentice and a model, but also a model pupil) at Bergamo's Accademia Carrara. This is the first major event dedicated to the painter and includes 40 works attributed to him.
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