Alessandro Dell'Acqua
Biography
Alessandro Dell’Acqua believes that every woman should be desired. Inspired by the leading women of Italian cinema – Sofia Loren, Anna Magnani, Monica Vitti, women at once desirable and feminine, strong and seductive – Dell’Acqua is passionate about enhancing women’s beauty through sexy and modern clothing.
Alessandro Dell’Acqua debuted his signature prêt-a-porter collection at Milan Moda Donna in March, 1996. Combining sharp tailoring with sensuality and femininity, it was greeted with rave reviews, and heralded his arrival as a new and important Italian designer. His men’s line debuted in January, 1998 at Pitti in Florence, earning him the title of fashionable Italy’s It Boy. In June, 2002, he was awarded the “Oscar della Moda” for “New Women’s Designer” by the Italian fashion community.
In 2000, Alessandro Dell’Acqua launched a line of hot-chic women’s shoes and has recently signed a new licensing agreement with 60-year shoemaker Ballin. In 2001, his first fragrance for women was licensed through EuroItalia, with an ad campaign by Helmut Newton featuring Helena Christensen. His men’s fragrance, also licenced through EuroItalia, was launched in August, 2003. In the spring of 2002, an eyewear line was licensed through Visibilia.
A men’s shoe license with Rodolfo Zengarini began with the Fall 2004 season.
Alessandro Dell’Acqua was born on December 21, 1962, in Naples. He received his degree in graphic design in 1982 from the prestigious Accademia di Belli Arti. At the age of 23 he was given an exclusive worldwide contract to design a line for Genny, one of the leading Italian fashion houses, working alongside Gianni Versace, who also designed a line for them. Several years later, he became Creative Director of Pietro Pianforini, a luxury knitwear label, where he developed an extraordinary talent for working with wool, cashmere and jersey. In the years following, Dell’Acqua designed for a multitude of top Italian brands, including Iceberg, Les Copains and Mariella Burani.
Alessandro Dell’Acqua believes that art and fashion are closely intertwined. He has collaborated repeatedly with American video artist and photographer Vanessa Beecroft. For the VB46 show at the Gagosian Gallery in Los Angeles, Beecroft’s models wore nothing except Dell’Acqua shoes with angular metal toes and heels, and for her wedding – also an art piece – he designed both the bride and groom’s ensembles. He contributes regularly to charities for children, and for AIDS research.
In 2003, Alessandro Dell’Acqua joined forces the Redwall Group, whose brands include the luxury apparel and accessories label Borbonese, for which Dell’Acqua also serves as Creative Director. Together, they have opened Alessandro Dell’Acqua stores in New York.
Alessandro Dell’Acqua grew up watching the great Italian films of Visconti, Rossellini and Fellini, and admiring both the women and men in them. His women’s collections have always been inspired by the raw sexiness and strong femininity of the great Italian leading ladies Anna Magnani, Monica Vitti, and Sofia Loren. “These are the women I imagine as I design my collections,” Dell’Acqua says. “They are free, they are powerful, they are not ashamed of their desires, they want to be beautiful.”
Dell’Acqua loves the unexpected. He injects a touch of eccentricity into each collection, using contrasting fabrics to reveal and emphasize the female silhouette. He plays sheer transparent chiffon off cashmere and double faced crepe, mixing luxurious clothes with simple ones, to create an utterly sensual, feminine, and modern look.
When Dell’Acqua designs his men’s collections, he also takes inspiration from the films that shaped him. As he says, “A man should be free. His clothes should be elegant, but not confining, luxurious but not formal. I love to see a certain eccentricity in a man, a capacity to balance tradition and innovation in a style that is wholly modern and personal.” His men’s clothes have an easy manliness that calls to mind the power and sensuality of Mastroianni. He delights in unusual combinations of knitwear and jersey with more formal elements from a man’s wardrobe.
For both his women’s and his men’s collection, Dell’Acqua believes in liberty; the freedom fully to express oneself through modern, sophisticated and truly exceptional clothing.
http://www.alessandrodellacqua.com/
