Ottavio Missoni
Here you will learn about Ottavio Missoni in 9 points.
Missoni is a Milan-based fashion house in Italy founded by Rosita and Ottavio “Tai” Missoni.
Ottavio, the son of an Italian sea captain and a Serbian countess, had been captured by the British during the war in 1942 at El Alamain and held as a prisoner of war until 1946. He referred to himself jokingly as 'a special guest of the King of England'.
Before Ottavio met his wife, he produced tracksuits which were to be worn by the Italian national team. They first met when Ottavio Missoni, went to London in 1948 to compete in the 400 meter hurdles at the Olympic Games. Rosita was there because she sent to study English in Italian, set her sights on the handsome, young Olympic swimmer. She told Marcus Fairs at Icon Magazine that: "He was gorgeous and I dreamed of meeting him!" They met outside London's Piccadilly station to go on their first date, arranged by a friend, and they married five years later and moved to Milan.
So, Missoni started out as a small family-owned store, run by Rosita and Ottavio Missoni. Rosita had worked in her family's small embroidery company, she was a skilled seamstress and knew about design. So, they started a workshop designing tracksuits but soon moved on to knitwear. This was begun in the basement of their first home in Galesseca with only a few old knitting machines. They began by selling their designs to other labels, but they decided to start their own fashion house. But, it wasn't until 1958 that the name "Missoni" was sewn into the label. They premiered their collections when they met Emmanuelle Kahn in 1964. Surprisingly, Missoni had a tough time getting their colorful designs with their trademark zigzags and stripes noticed, but soon their hard work paid off. Their innovative fashions caught the eye of Anna Piaggi, the famous Italian fashion journalist, in 1965, and she praised them in her articles. Their designs have become famous thanks to their colorful patterns and stripes on wide-ranging fabrics, as well as being easily identifiable as the “classic zigzag-pattern in the boldest, richest hues.”
The second time they made the headlines was in 1967. When their designs were being showcased at Palazzo Pitti, Rosita told the models to remove their brassieres to prevent the lines of her black silk jersey dresses from becoming ruined, not realizing the tops of the dresses would become transparent under the powerful lights leaving the fashion world shocked. The models were screamed at and sent away, but Saint Laurent introduced the nude look six months later.
A few years later, the famous and influential Vogue editor, Diana Vreeland, noticed the striking range of Missoni fashions, and offered to launch them in America. " Who is talking about colors these days? There are only shades!" she remarked, when she saw the attractive designs.
Missoni won the prestigious Neiman Marcus award for its fashions in 1973, widely regarded as being 'the Oscar of fashion', and the International Design Award in New York by the Fashion Group International for "having influenced in a decisive manner the field of fabric and fashion design, creating an unmistakable style." It had come a long way from its origins as a tiny company with designs made on a few knitting machines in the basement.
Today, Missoni is a large fashion house. their three children joined the family business. Their lines expanded when Ottavio Missoni began to design carpets and tapestries, home, footwear, perfume, and even luxurious hotels. But, they still retain their trademark, which is colourful patterns, stripes, and liberal use of many different fabrics. Their designs are made of twenty different fabrics such as wool, cotton, linen, rayon and silk and forty colors. It has stores in cities all over the world, including New York and Paris, as well as Italy.
The business is still family-run from the Missoni home and factory located north of Milan. Rosita and Ottavio had three children, Angela, Vittorio and Luca. Vittorio is Missoni's Marketing Director. Angela runs the women's wear section and is famous for bringing a new and younger look to the casual fashions with their light materials, and introduced ad campaigns photographed by highly regarded Mario Testino. Luca is in charge of menswear.
Rosita and Ottavio's granddaughter, the stunning Margherita recently launched the new Missoni scent, Missoni Profumi. This has caused a huge sensation because it is the label's first fragrance in 25 years. An acting and philosophy student, Margherita also models for Missoni and has traveled around the world promoting the new scent.
Angela Missoni, though, is the force currently behind the label. The designs are still influenced by a sense of tradition, but Angela seems willing to take sexier, more risqué chances by expanding her choice of fabric and cuts.
Missoni can be seen everywhere in Hollywood. It is worn by celebrities such as Demi Moore, Cameron Diaz, Sharon Stone, Jessica Simpson, Nicole Richie, Debra Messing, Nicole Kidman, Jennifer Lopez, Ashley Judd, Madonna, and Mary Kate & Ashley Olsen.
In November 2005, Missoni and RezidorSAS Hospitality signed an agreement to open a lifestyle hotel chain of the same name: Hotel Missoni. In March 2006, the first Missoni locations were announced for KUWAIT CITY, Edinburgh, and Dubai. Hotel Missoni KUWAIT will be the group's first property in the world, opening in a luxury mixed-use development on the seafront in the third quarter of 2007. The Edinburgh property will open in late 2008, while the Dubai hotel will debut at the end of 2008.
As the new younger generation play more of a part in continuing this very special family business, it seems that Missoni has a bright future ahead with its many different fashion lines. Ottavio and Rosita can rightly be very proud of their famous company, which started as a dream of Ottavio's. "I am the creator of Missoni, but Rosita made me," he told The Dallas Morning News.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Missoni
http://nymag.com/fashion/fashionshows/designers/bios/missoni/
http://www.lifeinitaly.com/fashion/missoni.asp