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ART CULTURE > EXHIBITION > Giovanna Caracciolo Ginetti, the princess-seamstress Date posted: 3rd July 2012

Giovanna Caracciolo Ginetti, the princess-seamstress

During the golden age of couture, the atelier was one of the most important places in a noble woman’s life. Fashion was representative of a great many things, and the right dress could make or break your appearance in society. Noble women needed to trust their seamstress and her taste, as well as sense of occasion when choosing a dress, but when they walked into Carosa, it was all much simpler, as the head designer, Giovanna Caracciolo Ginetti was one of them.

 Princess Giovanna Caracciolo Ginetti, born in Rome in 1910 to the historical Italian noble family Caracciolo was not the average noble woman. carosa-fashion-shoot-in-villa-borghese-romePrincess Giovanna chose to put her innate elegance and experience moving around at the highest echelons of society to the service of other noble women.

 irene-brin-in-carosa-dress-by-pasquale-de-antonis-cristofanetti-artIn 1947, with her friend Barbara Angelini Desalles, another women of noble descent, she set up the Atelier Carosa, in Pazza di Spagna in Rome. Her clientele mainly constituted of Italian and international nobility. Her fashion was an intricately detailed revisitation of her two great loves: Balenciaga and Roman Baroque.

 irene-brin-in-carosa-dress-by-pasquale-de-antonis-villa-borghese.jpgPrincess Giovanna’s aristocratic elegance and taste were supported by her eye for talent, Ibi Farkas, De Barentzen, Lancetti, Giambattista Vannozzi, Quirino Conti and Tarlazzi all worked in her atelier. Looking onto the Domes of Saint Peters and with their proportions and volumes as inspiration, fabulous Roman fashion came to life.

 irene-brin-in-carosa-dress-by-pasquale-de-antonisCarosa enjoyed great success, but closed its doors in 1974, when prêt-à-porter took over.

Written by: Valentina Zannoni

Credits: Pasquale De Antonis

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