Venice Fashion Week kicks off with a focus on sustainability. Over 80 creatives involved from October 19 to 29: the presentation on the Grand Canal, aboard Repower’s electric vessel
Venice Fashion Week boards Repower‘s electric boat to discuss sustainable tourism. For centuries, Venice has been the place where creativity and technology meet, giving rise to new visions for the city’s future. Venice’s innovative spirit was reaffirmed yesterday, October 18, 2022, on the occasion of the launch of the tenth edition of Venice Fashion Week, promoted by Venezia da Vivere, the communication and event organization network. The focus on sustainability and innovation was conveyed by hosting the presentation of the event aboard Repowere, one of Repower‘s native electric vessels, along the Grand Canal.
Today, October 19 at 5 PM, the official inauguration at the Liviana Conti boutique, with a special installation by Lunardelli Venezia that seals the brand’s commitment to craftsmanship, and at 7 PM at the Lunardelli Venezia atelier with the presentation of the collection of wooden and glass design objects and Liviana Conti garments. Following this, a special toast to celebrate Sebastiano Lunardelli, awarded the title Master of Arts and Crafts by the Fondazione Cologni dei Mestieri d’Arte, partner of the event.
Immersed in the silence of electric mobility, Laura Scarpa and Lorenzo Cinotti of Venezia da Vivere presented the rich program together with Fabrizio D’Oria, director of Vela, partner of Venice Fashion Week, and Davide Damiani, head of external relations at Repower Italia, project partner.
The common thread of the event is sustainability, a crucial theme today in a Venice seeking new models for quality tourism. The challenge involves promoting fine craftsmanship, which helps keep the city’s tradition alive by uniting the heritage of the past with the desire for new horizons.
“Thanks to Venice Fashion Week, multiple stakeholders are brought together, from Repower with its sustainable mobility ecosystem to many fashion industry players, including the opening of many luxury hotels to the public,” said Fabrizio D’Oria. “In this way, Venice truly becomes a protagonist and not just a showcase city. Projects like Repowere are highly valued by the administration, which has already launched electric mobility in buses at the Lido.”
Sustainability and innovation, together with design, are key elements of the Repowere project, which currently features two models, one open and one cabin version, both built by Cantiere Anselmo Mauri on Lake Garda.
Active year-round, Repowere has already been featured in some of the most popular events in the lagoon, such as the Film Festival and the Sustainability Boat Show. “This is not just a boat, but a model we believe in—that sustainable mobility is seen for what it already is: a key business lever for tourism, capable of meeting an increasingly sustainability-conscious demand at every stage of the travel experience,” explained Davide Damiani of Repower Italia.
“This boat has a range of up to 14 hours and can be recharged in less than an hour with fast charging. We are convinced that Venice represents a perfect stage for promoting the spread of this technology, which can make a difference in the lagoon and can benefit from the visibility offered by this magical city to enter other contexts, starting with lake environments.”
Encounters with two Venetian excellences
The Tessitura Luigi Bevilacqua and the mosaics of Orsoni Venezia 1888 are examples of that fine craftsmanship that makes Venice an absolute capital of beauty, and not only for the city itself. “These will be ten days in which you can experience firsthand the value of creativity in fashion and craftsmanship,” anticipated Laura Scarpa. “Among this year’s new featuresOrnamenti, a showcase of artisanal accessories with conferences featuring entrepreneurs and buyers, presentations, and emerging designer fashion shows, such as the award-winning ethical fashion start-up Endelea, which combines contemporary design with African tailoring.”
Sustainability is a lifestyle, as will be seen on the weekend of October 22 and 23 with Atelier Aperti: more than 40 artisans will showcase their collections in their workshops, where the creative process begins that leads to the creation of unique garments and objects.
For example, on October 23, we will see artists Séverina Lartigue and Nadia Syrkova at work, who will engage in dialogue at the Magazzino Gallery of Palazzo Contarini Polignac, one creating the silk roses she makes for haute couture, and the other creating, decorating, and painting artisanal hats.
A talk with Venetian hospitality
Daily events, fashion shows, debates, and networking opportunities, such as the meeting among directors of some of the city’s most prestigious hotels, including Patrizia Hofer of St. Regis Hotel, Alain Bullo of Londra Palace Hotel, Gioele Romanelli of Hotel Flora, Casa Fora, Hotel Novecento and Inside Venice, Gloria Beggiato of Hotel Metropole, Gianluca Lorenzet of boutique hotel Corte di Gabriela, Matteo Bisol of Venissa, and Andrea Di Maso of Hotel Luna Baglioni, which took place yesterday aboard Repowere, on the theme of sustainability.
“It emerged how much sustainability is demanded by the very clients who come to Venice, a city that, due to its structure, lends itself to becoming a laboratory for experimenting with new forms of quality tourism,” recounted Laura Scarpa, summarizing the focal points of the exchange among those who have their finger on the pulse of visitors arriving in the city. “We have networked some of the main stakeholders who expressed the need to meet again on other occasions to join forces and become promoters of sustainability initiatives, starting precisely with sustainable mobility.”
Among the speakers at the meeting was also Anthony La Salandra of Risposte Turismo, Sofia Ressia of Ca’ Foscari and Upskill, and Stefano Croce, President of Venetian tourist guides.
Among the other new features of Venice Fashion Week is the seminar on upcycling scheduled for Wednesday, October 26 at Palazzo Sagredo, organized by Confartigianato Imprese.
Upcycling, creative recycling of clothing and accessories will feature presentations by tailor Demis Marin of the Ramosalso atelier and Valentina Bonafé of EstroDiverso.
At Palazzo Sagredo on Thursday, October 27, a round table will be held: The value of artisanal collections for fashion buyers with the association Camera Buyer, David Clementoni, founder of the B2B marketplace Italian Artisan, with the presence of ecodesigner Tiziano Guardini and the creator of the Venice Fashion Week 2022 manifesto, illustrator Jacopo Ascari.
These are just some of the special events that showcase the Venice we love: vibrant, made up of creatives and innovators, forward-looking, and active in the sustainability debate.
All events are free with pre-registration:
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Venice Fashion Week is a project by Venezia da Vivere, a Venetian company specializing in digital communication, city projects, and events.
Photos by Marta Formentello.
