Adrian Appiolaza And Carla Sozzani Make Magic From The Archives
Moschino’s new Creative Director Adrian Appiolaza and fashion icon Carla Sozzani discuss their personal fashion archives, their individual journeys into developing them, and the unique challenges of maintaining them.
Working in fashion requires irrepressible, unquenchable passion. And building a fashion archive requires all that plus patience, top-notch organizational skills, and exhausting research. After working alongside Phoebe Philo at Chloé, at Loewe with Jonathan Anderson, at Miu Miu, and at Louis Vuitton, Argentinian designer Adrian Appiolaza became Creative Director of Moschino last January. His first collection launched in February in Milan, offering a modern take on the notoriously campy house. On the runway, models carried baguettes or tote bags covered in bright yellow smiley faces. Carla Sozzani, the grand dame of fashion—journalist, editor, art gallery owner, collector, and founder of 10 Corso Como—shares a fondness for fashion history with Appiolaza. Throughout their careers, both have built sprawling personal fashion archives (with numbers in the thousands) that they hold dear. The two fervent collectors met at the Moschino Milan office in conversation with L’OFFICIEL, and it didn't take them long to discover their shared passion for collecting, which ignites them with a warm, childlike enthusiasm.
L'OFFICIEL: How did you start collecting fashion?
ADRIAN APPIOLAZA: The first spark dates back to the mid-1980s, when I was still living in Argentina. It was not easy to come into contact with fashion, and I can still remember the emotion I felt when I found a copy of [British magazine] The Face in a thrift store. Suddenly, I discovered Comme des Garçons. A few years later I moved to the United Kingdom, and fashion came upon me with all its power. In addition to Comme, there was Margiela, Yohji Yamamoto, Issey Miyake. When I entered the industry I did in-depth research and, thanks to eBay, bought my first pieces to better understand the constructions of the clothes and to study the materials. Around 2010, I realized I had a certain number of pieces, and I felt the need to understand which season they belonged to. From there, I started organizing them.
CARLA SOZZANI: For me it was very different. I started working in fashion in 1968; I’ve really seen a lot. In 1967, Yves Saint Laurent opened his ready-to-wear and clothing boutique. That moment, everything changed. My sister Franca [the renowned former editor of Vogue Italia who passed away in 2016] and I bought like crazy. Until then, there was only couture, but at Saint Laurent you could come in, try it on, and take it home immediately. It was incredible, and I still have several of the pieces purchased from that time. When Versace opened his shop, there was a queue that went around the block. And then Claude Montana, Thierry Mugler, Armani. I was buying for myself; at that time I did not think about collecting. It was during the period with Romeo Gigli [the ‘80s] that I started buying for research, to find inspiration. At the time I was constantly wearing jeans, so I have a collection of those, too.
L'O: How do you manage your archives?
CS: My collection is all cataloged and practically intact. I sold a few pieces, because I wanted to promote the concept of a circular economy. I evaluate the acquisitions of what will be the great vintage of tomorrow… I think of the Balenciaga designed by Nicolas Ghesquière.
AA: During the pandemic, Ryan [Benacer, Appiolaza’s partner] lost his job, and focused his energy on the archive. We promoted it through a newsletter sent to key people in the industry, and now we regularly rent garments for research, but also for celebrities looking for something special, like Katy Perry at the recent Vogue World in Paris [wearing a Fall 2019 Noir Kei Ninomiya dress]. I like the idea that those items can still be worn. If they always remain closed in the warehouse, they don’t have any more life.
CS: I'm always a little afraid that they will ruin them. If they go to a party, will they be stained, or will they tear? But you're right. The clothes are happy to come out of the boxes.
L'O: Carla, you co-founded the Azzedine Alaïa Foundation and serve as its president. What is Alaïa's collection like?
CS: It’s quite incredible. There are around 35,000 pieces, including roughly 500 Dior and 600 Balenciaga pieces, just to give some numbers. But there are also pieces by Jeanne Lanvin, Paul Poiret, Jean-Paul Gaultier, Rei Kawakubo, Courrèges, and Chanel. Azzedine was a perfectionist: he studied everything to the last detail, never satisfied with his work. And he had a huge love for fashion. We went to an auction together once; it was around 2004 and he told me, "I promise. I will not buy anything.” After a while I see the price keep going up as he sneaks his finger up his nose. He had agreed to that signal with the bid caller and did not stop even after my complaints. "Stop; we don’t have all that money,” I told him, but there was no stopping him.
L'O: Adrian, are there any important new additions to your archive?
AA: John Galliano is my new obsession. The creativity and quality of his collections is incredible; the problem is the prices. He’s reaching stratospheric numbers. I take comfort in thinking of one of the most incredible purchases of my life.... I bought some Martin Margiela pieces directly from [Belgian model] Kristina de Coninck. She was his muse, and I was lucky enough to know her through mutual friends. She invited me to her house, opened her cupboards, and agreed to sell some clothes, knowing of my great passion for Margiela. It was an iconic moment, something I will never forget.
L'O: What relationship do you have with the pieces in your archive?
AA: Every time something new comes along, we throw a little party with my partner, who actively takes care of the archive, currently around 8,000 pieces. We open the box and place the new entry on one of the mannequins we keep at home, where Comme des Garçons' most spectacular looks usually hang.
CS: With the start of 10 Corso Como I started thinking like a buyer and archiving things that I thought should be kept. Once I had taken a piece of Comme des Garçons so nice that I wanted to leave it for a while in the display in the store. A client saw it and, due to a misunderstanding, they sold it to her. When I heard it, I didn’t want to hear excuses: I had the person call to ask for the dress back, explaining what happened. These things happen when you really love something.
AA: When I think about when I managed to buy the iconic Martin Margiela vest in porcelain from Fall/Winter 1989… for years, I told myself I would never find one, and then I did. I contacted someone who had worked at Maison Margiela Artisanal, and she suggested a name to me. I searched so long for nothing, and then I found two!
L'O: Carla, do you have any special exhibits for your archives in the pipeline?
CS: I was just talking the other day with Olivier Saillard [director of the Fondation Azzedine Alaïa, and curator of the Azzedine Alaïa collection at Musée de la Mode de la Ville de Paris’ Palais Galliera] about having an exhibition there. It must be meaningful and have a narrative. Every piece must be able to tell a story. I'm thinking of the Alexander McQueen pieces… I knew him since the time he came to Italy to work with Romeo Gigli. At the moment it's just an idea.
