No matter what you call it -immanence, pantheism or whatever- the concept is clear: everything is holy, has value, and demands attention to its specific properties and qualities. This is the philosophy of Holy Caftan: we respect the fabrics of our clothes, the tools we use to make them, the people who make them.
The project is closely tied to southern italian history and craftsmanship, and it is inspired by research on its bridal and priest’s trousseaus. Unlike other crafts, embroidery has purely aesthetic purposes: it is probably the very first form of art. The choice of yarns, combinations of colours, patterns in relief or in transparency, shapes and symbols were the first elements used to embellish textiles, making them unique. The ancient art of embroidery in the Mediterranean Sea offers a variety of technical and decorative patterns that confirm the natural contamination related to movement in people and manufactures within the basin. Holy Caftan rediscovers the rigorous elegance of this tradition, focusing in particular on the monochromatic works of Italian and Spanish seventeenth century embroidery.
The cut of the clothes recalls the caftan and the tunic. With wide sleeves down to the wrist or without sleeves, short waist or knee-length, close and stop by a belt or large and undulating: whichever its form, the caftan is the primordial dress. Its beauty lies in its simplicity, and its shape is ultimately given by the air that moves the dress and by the grace of the woman who wears it. The tailoring choice of Holy Caftan was to act wisely on these simple lines, building an apparel that is both couture and loosen.
Our embroiderers and seamstresses live and work in Naples, Sorrento, Positano, Capri. Their ages and their personal stories are very different. They all share in the precious ability for the careful making of our collective work.
SHOWROOM
Via Marcona, 3 – 20129 Milan – Italy
