So far Irenebrination featured quite a few interviews with fashion designers. But today I’m going to leave you with two special guests, Milo Bandini and Irma Vivaldi from the (bilingual - Italian/English) Paddock blog.
I have been following the work of the Paddock team for a while now and I was pleased to see they have been putting a lot of effort into their well-researched pieces, rediscovering the work of the craftsmen working in the Parabiago district, supporting the “Made in Italy” and analysing in very interesting posts the situation in the Italian factories on strike.
There is a sort of "fake" debate in Italy about looking back at traditions and rediscovering high quality and craftsmanship. Even major fashion publications such as the Italian edition of Vogue claim they support such principles, but don't seem to be doing anything to prove it (that's why I call it "fake" dabate...).
The people behind Paddock have been instead researching, rediscovering and actively promoting the work of quite a few forgotten artisans.
You will find the interview very interesting (film and fashion fans, please check out their posts tieing in Vittorio De Sica's Matrimonio all'italiana and Barrow's shoes - well done! - I'm so happy to know that when I will be hospitalised in the clinic for 'obsessive fashion and film fans' I will share the ward with the Paddock team...) especially if you are into footwear and you will also discover very interesting connections with Manolo Blahnik.
So let’s welcome the Paddock team on Irenebrination and, if you are a museum curator/researcher mainly working with footwear, please help the Paddock team finding a place for the Erminio Zaffaroni footwear collection by contacting them at the following email address:
Apart from selling materials to legendary shoemakers such as Ferragamo, Zaffaroni created unique leather designs, taking inspiration from art to come up with extraordinary surface elaborations that gave leather the quality of luxurious fabrics and textiles. But let's hear it all from our Paddock friends.
Can you introduce yourself a bit? Who's behind the blog and what job do you do in your life?
Milo Bandini: Behind Paddock there’s Irma Vivaldi (Marketing Manager) and myself (Construction Consultant) plus a few friends who contribute whenever they can with photos and ideas.
What prompted you to launch the site and what's its main aim?
MB: It all started out of frustration at not finding any information about the artisan who created JFK’s shoes, Celestino Grassi, a childhood memory of mine. I remember visiting his shop in San Vittore Olona (Milan) along the Sempione SS 33 route - a historical road built by Napoleon - many years ago. Then, all of a sudden, it disappeared. We asked around, turning for help to other artisans, local people and teachers but nobody knew anything or they didn’t even care. We couldn’t find anything also on the Internet, but then Irma spotted a piece in a local newspaper, a report about a small footwear exhibition featuring a selection from the Zaffaroni Collection. So we got a hold of Mr. Erminio Zaffaroni (and I can assure you it wasn’t easy) and we got completely hooked by his story and his collaborations with other Italian companies and local artisans.
Irma Vivaldi: He is a charming 74 year old shoe-crazed former entrepreneur: he owns more than 1,000 pair of shoes and samples. We liked each other and we decided to organise an exhibition together last September. He knew very well JFK's craftsman and he filled us in about this story. Mr. Zaffaroni represents the memory of the Parabiago footwear district and nobody gives him the attention he deserves.
Can you tell me more about the exhibition?
MB: It essentially revolved around two Lego brick-shaped containers in Piazza del Liberty, right behind Milan's Duomo. It was funny because we were right in the middle of the fashion week with no ties whatsoever with the fashion system even though we got the support of the City of Milan. We gave the second container - free of charge - to a professional school in Legnano (Milan) which three years ago started a program in cooperation with some artisans from the Parabiago footwear district, an area with a long tradition of high quality craftsmanship - Louboutin, Blahnik, Chanel and many others, produce their designs here. In a nutshell: the two containers represented the past (Mr. Zaffaroni's shoes) and the future (the school) of the Parabiago footwear district. Unfortunately, it didn't turn out the way we expected.
Why do you think there wasn't a much more positive feedback towards this initiative?
IV: I don't want to get into details but school and artisans didn't back up that much the initiative. No wonder, as this is typical of the Parabiago district. People often think it’s not useful to care about the past and they don't seem to be interested in collectively promoting their work. Starting from the ‘50s you can count quite a few failed attempts at obtaining international recognition as a quality collective brand. In the meantime, footwear labs are closing one after the other. The highlight of the event was the visit of a childhood friend of Mr Zaffaroni who has been working for Manolo Blahnik since 1984. I can't reveal his name, but it was great to see him explaining to astonished ladies how a pair of shoes must be done!
How would you describe Paddock? Is it a a blog, a diary or a safe haven for passionate fashion fans?
IV: It's more like a scrapbook. We don't have enough time to keep up with all the silly things going on in the fashion world, so we focused on the local history because there are no books or information on the net about it. At the same time, we keep an eye open about all things "Made in Italy".
MB: It’s definitely a scrapbook. See, the Parabiago district is like "everyone for himself"; the artisans are so blind they don't even realise they should do something about their condition otherwise nobody will remember them in 10 years' time. That's why we collect every single piece of information we can get our hands on. We also share the views of Paolo Boggi who is very critical towards the fashion system and towards some of the puppeteers behind it. We interviewed Boggi right after the publication of his third book for the magazine we printed in order to spread the word. The magazine became our first – non-digital - Paddock's post. 15,000 copies were given away for free in one week at the above-mentioned exhibition. By the way, we should mention that Paddock is a temporary blog: It will be up and running until the anniversary of the Five Days of Milan. After that, we'll see.
In a few posts on your site you tackled the "Made in Italy" issue and wrote about the strikes at La Perla and probles in the Prato textile district: do you feel the media in Italy are doing enough to raise awareness about these problems?
MB: It's never enough. All the news about strikes, relocations abroad and so on were taken from local newspapers, not from the main ones. The national press is too busy reporting about real estate properties in Montecarlo, prostitution in the government and so on. Right now, climing on the roof of your factory or university, as many workers and students have done so far to protest against their conditions, is not enough to get the front page. It would probably be better if you would hire the entire Cirque Du Soleil to make your protest heard. In fact it would be even better trying with a burlesque show…
IV: The law about the "Made in Italy" issue got some coverage, but, unfortunately, they told just one side of the story and not a single journalist tried to explain it. It was good the EU rejected it.
You wrote some very interesting posts on historical footwear houses/brands in Italy: which brand - among the ones you rediscovered - is your favourite one and why?
IV: Anselmo Ronchetti, Napoleon's shoemaker, and Aldo Sacchetti from Turin. We heard from Armando Pollini, artistic director of the Vigevano Footwear Museum, that Sacchetti's shoes are the only Italian ones kept at the Louvre in Paris. He is one of the forefathers of the stiletto heel and his designs are beautiful and timeless. Sacchetti donated some shoes at the Musée Des Arts Décoratifs but they are forgotten and collecting dust in some closet. We asked them to provide some info or photo in order to let people see them, we exchanged a few e-mails and finally they asked us money for the rights to use the pictures: how’s that for a non-profit organization?
MB: I have a soft spot for the work of Salvatore Deodato and of footwear company Titano, owned by the Sciuccati family, mainly because Mr. Zaffaroni is so passionate about them. Deodato's work is over the top, but it can't be ignored.
In some of your posts you wrote about rebellion and style: in your opinion, can rebellion be stylish and can style be rebellious?
MB: Definitely yes. The gallery "Style Into Rebellion" is just our tribute to people, artists, bands, writers who did things differently and went against the grain.
What do you think about "fashion/style blogs" in general: do you genuinely think they changed the fashion industry for the better?
IV: They definitely changed the whole scenario, though I’m not sure they did it for the better. Trouble is they are only looking for the “now factor”, turning to contemporary designers, one after the other. They don’t seem to have any time to look back and analyse things in perspective.
MB: We can't beat them, but we don't want to join them either. Although I'm pretty sure among the legion of fashion bloggers - somewhere - there are potential allies; we just need to find a way to take them away from the Vogue brigade…
What are your future ambitions for the site?
MB: We'd like to find people who can help us with information about the Parabiago district history and - even more important - who can work with us to find a permanent place for the Zaffaroni Collection. At the moment it's scattered in 4 different deposits and not available to the public. It must be done quickly, otherwise it will be lost pretty soon. It's a small effort, but with a huge return for what regards culture, craftsmanship and traditions.
All images courtesy of Paddock.
Member of the Boxxet Network of Blogs, Videos and Photos
Member of the Boxxet Network of Blogs, Videos and Photos
Comments