Gainluca Persia

WHAT’S YOUR BACKGROUND?

I am Gianluca Persia a milliner, stylist and performer based in Milan who makes headwear using vintage fabrics and recycled materials. Each hat is a unique and totally handmade creation. I graduated from Naba in 2020, I had the opportunity to work as an assistant milliner at Francesco Ballestrazzi Artisanal where I learned the secrets of traditional millinery techniques, developing an eclectic aesthetic that transcends the boundaries of gender identity and the limits of the mind.

THE CONCEPT OF YOUR COLLECTION?

A year with thirteen moons, thirteen new moons – a particular astronomical conjunction that occurs only rarely – makes the most sensitive souls vulnerable, leading to conditions that make life unbearable. Overwhelmed by this influence, I in turn developed a melancholic syndrome which I tried to analyse by dissecting my unconscious. I then identified with the image of a martyred Saint Sebastian, pierced by the pain of my past traumas and disturbances. From this point on, I tried to find a cure for the disease, exorcising the evil in a superstitious way, thinking of part of the collection as an ex-voto healing the body, starting from a personal research on the tradition of ex-votos, from the (semi-pagan) beginnings to modern Catholicism.

I then began to analyse “pain” as the initial spark in every artistic journey and how this “evil” force then manages to create something of eternal beauty, just think of the damned stories of artists of the past and compare them with the supreme beauty of their works. The collection is divided into three sections: Martyrdom, Ecstasy and Ascension; each section has about 7 ouftifs for a total of 21. In the collection I have interpreted melancholic thinking with neutral colours and very delicate workmanship (micro-bead embroidery, feather embroidery, decorative stitching) in contrast the silhouettes are inspired by fashion from the late 90s to the early 2000s. The accessories are of considerable importance in the collection, starting with the hats, which vary in shape and materials; no less important are the accessories for shoes and bags. There are many references to late medieval and renaissance fashion, the result of my personal research into the history of costume.