From 18 to 22 June, Florence is once again the cradle of  creativity, industry and fashion with events, meetings and talents. 

Florence, May 14 2012. On occasion of Pitti Uomo 82, from 18 to 22 June 2012, Polimoda is extending an invitation to reflect on fashion culture, the fashion industry, and training, during a week full of surprises and new content. In an effort to go beyond the standard concept of a “Fashion Week” inspired by Renaissance-Humanist philosophy, Polimoda will be tearing down the barriers among the single disciplines to restore Florence to its historic role as a propulsive hub of ideas, to rethink and to challenge models that by now are showing serious signs of wear, to relaunch the culture of that particularly Italian knowhow known as saper fare.

When we think of Fashion Week we generally think the world style capitals saturated with presentations and runway shows for days on end – but the fashion system draws on much more: culture, visionary thinking, de-construction and re-thinking of tradition, without ever losing sight of the innovation swept in by young talents. Fashion culture is the protagonist at Polimoda Fashion Week 2012, during which we intend to reconnect the world of training with industry, the cities with the fashion system, and to draw parallels and promote discussion. An ambitious project that opens with a Guest Lecture by Hirofumi Kurino, generally regarded as one of the most authoritative personalities in the fashion business. A true fashion oracle, who built on his early experience as buyer and trend analyst to become co-founder and art director of the Japanese retail giant United Arrows, which offers an assortment ranging from streetwear to the most exclusive of tailor-mades. Hirofumi Kurino will be illustrating his views on fashion and, above all, his forecasts for the future based on analysis of today’s world.

Villa Favard – built in 1875 by Fiorella Favard de L’Anglade and today the headquarters of  Polimoda – once again becomes a venue as a cultural salon and a creative meeting point, as was its owner’s intention. The villa – one of Florence’s most significant late 18th-century palazzi  – will be as animated today as it was in the past, with “LE SALON,” a forum for exclusive talks and interactions among “visionaries” who will be addressing not only fashion but also the theme of “Momenting the Memento”. A conversation among opinion leaders from the worlds of industry, fashion, culture, and training: participants will include writers and journalists, philosophers, curators, architects, artists, teachers, and students, all of whom who will be exchanging ideas on the theme of  “The City, Training, and Fashion.” A consesso, an assembly, of great minds from different sectors – just like it was in Renaissance times – will be meeting to read the past and devise ways of taking up present and future challenges. This is just the first in a series of meetings that will culminate in 2015 in the “IFFTI – International Foundation of Fashion Technology Institutes” conference in Florence at Polimoda’s Villa Favard headquarters.

And meanwhile, the creativity of young talents will be showcased at two events: POLIMODATALENT 2012 and POLIMODA FASHION SHOW 2012.

This year, Polimoda is holding the second edition of POLIMODATALENT, a creative laboratory and a launch platform for the best of Polimoda’s graduate talents. A project that intends to provide visibility for the students, to guide them on their career paths, to encourage and support their ideas, and to help them grow in their chosen professions.   

Creatives on the runway in the artistic setting of Villa Favard at POLIMODA FASHION SHOW 2012, the event that turns the spotlight on the creations of students in their last year of the three-year Fashion Design and Fashion Technology course. In view of the numbers that will be participating, the fashion show will be broken up into three different sessions according to student choice: White, Black, and Red. A grand event to which the city is already looking forward. For the first time, it will be set at Villa Favard, now its re-found role as a vital centre for research and experimentation.

And there will even be time for celebrating at a suggestively-located Evening Party, an event that marks a milestone in fashion communication: the fifth anniversary of The Business of Fashion, the online editorial platform founded in 2007 by Imran Amed, who has chosen Polimoda and Florence for this special occasion. On Thursday, 21 June, starting at 10:30 p.m., Villa Favard will change gears to host “BoF x Polimoda,” a surprising mix of music, fashion, technology, and the breathtaking view of Florence and the Arno from the Villa’s garden.

A Fashion Week in pure Polimoda style. An ambitious project for a distinctive contribution to the “rebirth” of Florence, a city as capable now as in the past of producing and attracting excellence from all the surrounding world.  

POLIMODA FASHION WEEK – Villa Favard

Monday 18 June:
Lecture by Hirofumi Kurino at 5:00 p.m.

Tuesday 19 June:
Show White at 10:00 a.m. (by invitation)
Show Black at 2:00 p.m. (by invitation)
Show Red at 4:30 p.m. (by invitation)

Thursday 21 June:
“Le Salon” at 2:00 p.m. (by invitation)
Party BoF x Polimoda at 10:30 p.m. (by invitation)

Every Day: POLIMODATALENT 2012