Beppe Modenese: The Prime Minister of Italian Fashion

He stepped into the world of fashion around 1950s, starting work with Giovanni Battista Giorgini and organised fashions shows and events for the promotion of Italian fashion. He hosted a historic show at the Sala Bianca of Palazzo Pitti featuring top designers like Roberto Capucci and Emilio Pucci in Florence in 1952 and later, transitioned the center of fashion gravity to Milan establishing Milan fashion system. 

The "Prime Minister of Italian Fashion", Beppe Modenese died this Saturday at 90. Beppe is credited as the man who pinned Italy on the fashion map and he was beyond instrumental in shaping the country's fashion industry. Known for his signature red socks, Modenese was most recently the honorary chairman of the Italian Fashion Chamber. 

He stepped into the world of fashion around 1950s, starting work with Giovanni Battista Giorgini and organised fashions shows and events for the promotion of Italian fashion. He hosted a historic show at the Sala Bianca of Palazzo Pitti featuring top designers like Roberto Capucci and Emilio Pucci in Florence in 1952 and later, transitioned the center of fashion gravity to Milan establishing Milan fashion system. 

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He also played a key role in laying the foundation of Italian High Fashion Syndicate which later became National Chamber of Italian Fashion, also to be led by him for several coming years. During his tenure, runway shows were concentrated in the now-old Milan convention center, although now the locations have been decentralised throughout the city but Milan remains the fashion capital of the world to this day. Modenese also founded MODIT, a regulatory body for Milan fashion, in 1978. 

If it wasn't for Beppe, the world would never have been introduced to Italian talents notably Coco Chanel, Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana translating to high-fashion international brands, Chanel and Dolce Gabbana. He curated a fashion show for Chanel in Moscow in 1960 and Dolce and Gabbana made their runway debut through him in 1985. 

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Apart from bringing Italy to the world stage for fashion, Modenese also revolutionised ready-to-wear and street-wear fashion through his own impeccable and sophisticated style. His on-point hats and colour blocked looks stole hearts of every fashion house around the world. 

No doubt, he received numerous accolades during his career, the most notable ones of them being ,the honor of Knight from the President of the Council of Ministers in 1985, "La Rosa Camuna" from the Lombardy Region in 1999 and the "Capitoline Wolf", the most prestigious honour in Rome Capital from the hands of Franca Ciampi in 2002. 

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His death almost means the end of a fashion era in Milan and his legacy is remembered by notable personalities such as his good friend Georgio Armani, fashion council president Carlo Capasa, conductor Riccardo Muti among others.  

Beppe's contribution to fashion not just in terms of Italy but the whole world, is so massive that no title can do it enough justice. 

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