baccano

all clothing. Ettore Poli
shoes. Vintage Archive
jewellery. La Gazza Ladra
opposite
all clothing. Ettore Poli
jewellery. La Gazza Ladra

Rising fashion designer Ettore Poli wants to reinvent what it means to look and feel good. “We wear clothes almost every day, they set boundaries for our movements and express our social standing, but they also help us set our mood,” they state. “That’s why I try to design clothes that feel good on the skin, with soft, silky materials sewn in symbolic shapes, as clothes work as amulets too in a way. I always think about freedom when designing: the freedom to move around and dance, but also the freedom to look inward, to express a blurry image about who you are.” With that mindset, their forward-thinking “Baccano,” the graduate collection created and designed by Poli, was crafted.

Speaking with Schön!, Ettore Poli opens up about their latest collection, their creative process, and the deeper meanings behind their unique approach to genderless, sustainable fashion.

all clothing. Ettore Poli
opposite
all clothing. Ettore Poli
shoes. Marni
accessories. Vintage Archive

Can you tell us more about the inspiration behind your collection BACCANO?

BACCANO is my graduate collection, my first real attempt to express what fashion means to me. It’s been a wonderful ride, but I tried to be as professional as I could because I think fashion is both an art and a craft, it requires work. I designed thinking about a real target customer and what values I wanted to represent. My ethos would be to create timeless pieces, I looked into trend forecasting to mix them into the collection too, but what I was most interested in were pieces that had a timeless quality. There’s always a quite spiritual side to everything I work on, but I try to make it a practical spirituality, an oxymoron.

How would you describe your design philosophy, and how does it reflect in your collections?

We wear clothes almost every day, they set boundaries for our movements and express our social standing, but they also help us set our mood. That’s why I try to design clothes that feel good on the skin, with soft, silky materials sewn in symbolic shapes, as clothes work as amulets too in a way. I always think about freedom when designing: the freedom to move around and dance, but also the freedom to look inward, to express a blurry image about who you are.

What is the inspiration behind your latest collection?

BACCANO is an Italian word that means chaos or cacophony, but it comes from a Greek epithet of Dionysus, the god of freedom and frenzy. His cults were the first one to accept women and slaves as followers, they were all about liberation and madness and rediscovering our connection to nature. It inspired me to look into historical and folkloristic costumes used during pagan-based holidays and I found a rich tradition of masks and ritual robes that were supposed to turn you into this wild, natural being.

all clothing. Ettore Poli
shoes. Vintage Archive
opposite
all clothing. Ettore Poli
shoes. Vintage Archive

What unique elements or themes can we expect to see in the latest collection?

I played with subtlety and symbolism, ivy leaves shapes in collars and plackets, flower-like skirts and micelles-like pants. It’s a collection about nature, how nature can mingle with the human body in unexpected ways and how that can feel liberating. I always asked during all fittings if the garments felt comfortable. It was really important for me that style and symbolism didn’t take away from the wearability of it all, I think what I intended to make were more amulets than clothes and amulets are something you’re supposed to forget you’re even wearing.

Can you walk us through your creative process from concept to final product?

The inspiration was the easiest part to find, It was something that always interested me and one day I was simply talking with my mother and Pink Floyd’s The Great Gig in the Sky started to play in the background and I said it was how I imagined menads to scream. They were the priestesses of Dionysus and from there everything else came naturally. Finding the materials was fun and I visited a Pleating factory so that they could better explain the process to me and show me a few samples. Then I started to draw and finalize all the special details that make a garment complete. I made my own patterns for cutting fabric, made a few toiles, made some adjustments and finally found someone who could sew everything perfectly into a final product.

all clothing. Ettore Poli
shoes. Vintage Archive
opposite
all clothing. Ettore Poli
accessories. Vintage Archive

How do you ensure that your genderless designs cater to a diverse range of body types while maintaining comfort and style?

I think it’s all about materials and volume: a beautiful pleated fabric with a silky feel can create the perfect volume for any body type to not only fit in but move around too. I think movement is what makes pleats really come to life. And I feel once you’ve made a garment that can fit any body type the less you think about gender, the better it is. Finally, a genderless design was part of the whole inspiration: dionysian cults were all about gender-fuck, men dressed as women and women dressed as men. It was a cult about liberation so it felt natural to just forget about gender, to just make clothes.

Could you discuss the process of creating patterns from photos of mould and micelles and how they are incorporated into your garments?

All of the pleated fabrics have my patterns printed on them with sustainable inks. I wanted to find a symbol that could translate the violent nature of some Dionysian practices, it was important to remember that we will all turn back into the soil one day. Mould was the perfect fit because it wasn’t too much on the nose but it’s a symptom of decay we all encounter, so I took photos of mouldy fruits and food and walls and collaged them together to get this abstract yet recognisable texture.

How does the concept of sustainability play a role in your design process and the overall mission of BACCANO?

I always try to incorporate sustainability into every project, I think at this point it would be irresponsible not to. All the fabrics I used in this collection are completely sustainable, for example, I used a lot of deadstock fabric. Even the fabrics I used for the patches and collages I got from old sample books from local upholstery shops. Finally, pleating does require a high percentage of polyester but I was able to find the perfect fabric made from 100% recycled polyester.

full look. Ettore Poli
opposite
all clothing. Ettore Poli
shoes. Vintage Archive

What were some of the creative challenges you faced while designing and how did you address them?

When your abstract ideas have to be turned into actual garments there are always challenges, especially when you have to deal with different suppliers with different timelines and different approaches. You learn to improvise, to think on your feet. I remember this call I got from the seamstress about a seam that didn’t turn out great on the pleats so I went there and started to improvise. I draped the fabric scraps we had on the skirt to create a new panel instead of the old one we removed and it turned out far better than the original project was ever going to be.

What are your plans for the future, and are there any upcoming projects or collaborations you can share with us?

I’m still finishing my internship as a product developer and I want to gain as much experience as I can in the next years. I want to see what I can do for the fashion industry, I’m really eager to partake in this beautiful act of creation, to work and learn and grow. I’m really open about all the opportunities that I could make happen or that could simply happen.

What advice would you give to aspiring fashion designers looking to break into the industry?

I actually haven’t broken into the industry yet so the only advice I can give is what I always tell myself, which is that no one is running after me. This industry sometimes can make you feel like everything that isn’t fast-paced is destined to fail, but I think that isn’t true. I still have time, I think we all do. Yeah, it’s important to work hard but for creativity to flow slow moments and pauses are important too.