The fashion of the 1950s arose following an explosion of Italian creativity, a period that ran from the 1948 political elections to the 1960 Rome Olympics.

Italy in those years was a country that had just emerged from the destruction of the Second World War and, thanks to a great inner strength, saw its economic and material rebirth. The Italian people wanted to live, experiment, show off, dream and rejoice; and so, thanks to the peculiar Italian creativity, the rise of "Made in Italy" occurred. The decade of the 1950s was the first time of prosperity for Italy; a fast and carefree era in which the concept of life received a new meaning: prosperity.

So even the woman, previously seen as a mother of the family, obedient and submissive, now represented, thanks also to the influence of Italian cinema, hope after the hunger of war, an elegant and sophisticated woman, cared for in every aspect, self-confident. Even the political situation, with a stable government, contributed to giving more security to the Italian people. This whole framework of innovations also allowed in the field of fashion a path of evolution that today, although not yet having reached its goal, makes Italy a leading nation in world fashion, equal to France and the United States.

After the First World War, women, who now had the opportunity to access roles that had previously been held exclusively by men, began to aspire to practical and functional clothing and simple hairstyles: they shortened their skirts, began to wear trousers and to wear their hair very short. This was probably the first real revolution in the history of fashion. Perhaps the revolution after the Second World War was even greater, as for the first time people spoke of fashion as we understand it today. The clothes were not only functional and practical, but also depicted the mood of an entire generation, full of life and new colors.

This new fashion was introduced by the French designer Christian Dior and nicknamed “new look”, which quickly took hold in Italy too. According to Dior, the “new look” was used to give women the femininity and refinement that had been lost during the war: the female figure Lidia Trivisonne WS 2006/07 2 comes back to life: the shoulders are stripped and become soft and rounded, the breasts are highlighted, the waist is very thin, the use of the corset with padded hips returns, skirts are voluminous and full. The woman as an object is re-established, beautiful to admire but who does nothing and spends her time in beauty salons. The hair is permed and soft, the make-up heavy but detailed, unbridled use of blush on the cheekbones, plucked eyebrows, black eyeliner, colored eye shadow and mascara, red lipstick.

Italy had understood that its fashion could challenge the hegemony of French Haute Couture thanks to its imagination, wearability, simplicity of cut and refinement of materials, the skillful use of colour and decorations. It wasn't just a question of lower prices: Italian fashion was above all in tune with the new lifestyles that the first real generation of working women were establishing in the United States and Northern Europe. Until the early 1950s, Haute Couture was reserved for an elite: aristocracy, upper middle class and cinema . But soon the desire to dress well, to be elegant in both clothing and accessories, also arose among the rest of the population. However, we have to wait until the 1960s when, thanks to "prêt-à-porter", fashion became accessible to a large part of the population. A typical item of clothing of those years was the balloon skirt, in fact a puffy shape, obtained with a narrow band attached to the hem so as to create a curve on the inside towards the knees. Also called “bubble skirt” (in England), this skirt became a symbol of femininity, representing the return to a sumptuous and somewhat nostalgic style with a 19th century taste, especially highlighting adolescent body types. The first to propose the balloon line was the Spaniard Cristobal Balenciaga, and today this line has returned to be part of our wardrobe. I would also like to briefly mention another symbol of that era: the “beehive” hairstyles. There were competitions to see who could style their hair the highest and who could spray the most hairspray. These funny hairstyles were typical of young women and, consequently, viewed with contempt and distrust by older people.

Since the 1930s, dressmakers were no longer tailors, but renowned designers; in the 1950s, they began to make a name for themselves among the stars of Italian Fashion. This innovation was possible thanks to the post-war expenses and earnings that increased the ever-stronger demand for designer clothes because there was a general economic boom. Names like the Fontana Sisters, Roberto Capucci, Emilio Pucci and Fernando Gattinoni designed the most beautiful clothes of those years; if I wanted to name a foreign designer I cannot leave out the "God of Fashion" Christian Dior who had already been filling people's souls with his creations for 20 years. Although we have already heard a lot about the Fontana Sisters, I would like to refresh our memory: For the art of the Fontana Sisters it is a celebration of the places of origin of their family and their business. Lidia Trivisonne WS 2006/07 3 In fact, Zoe, Micol and Giovanna Fontana began right in Traversetolo, in their mother's tailoring shop, the path that with courage and genius would lead them to obtain success and recognition first in Rome and then throughout the world.

The first of the Sisters' dresses to bring fame and lustre overseas was Linda Christian's wedding dress, when she married Tyrone Power in the Basilica of Santa Francesca Romana. From that day on, a sort of frenzy began among America's fiancées to desire wedding dresses created by the Fontana Sisters.

For example, the daughter of the President of the United States, Margaret Truman. Having thus relaunched the Italian look, the “Sorelle Fontana” brand established itself at a time when France dominated the international fashion scene with the names of Dior and Balmain and from the atelier in Rome it reached the markets of the entire world. These first successes were followed by many others, the Fontana Sisters intertwined their work with famous Italian industries, they linked themselves to the theater and cinema, to finance and politics, without ever forgetting the artisanal origins of their art and the profusion of culture that always distinguished them. I would like to introduce yet another world-famous Italian designer: Roberto Capucci. Born in Rome in 1930, Capucci was judged the best creator of Italian fashion (especially by Dior) at just 26 years of age. In 1962 he opened an atelier in Paris where he was welcomed with clamor and enthusiasm. Capucci was the first Italian artist to be asked to sign one of his creations.

In the 1950s, a new role for models emerged, who, from almost anonymous faces, became personalities. Thus the era of famous models was born, which then increased even more in the 1960s . Among the first were the English Jean Shrimpton and Twiggy (the first "breadstick" woman), who became famous for their photographs taken by the Englishmen David Bailey, Terence Donovan and Brian Duffy. They were not interested in how elegant a model could make the clothing, they wanted to show how sexy the dress could make the model look, and thus brought about a revolution in thinking.

As mentioned before, fashion was reserved for an elite , including movie stars: Linda Christian, Rita Hayworth, Ava Gardner, Liz Taylor and Audrey Hepburn; but the Italian cinema of Cinecittà also bore fruit: Sophia Loren, Gina Lollobrigida, Silvana Mangano and Marisa Allasio. By becoming ambassadors of fashion, they established a relationship between fashion and cinema. This began in the early 1900s in Hollywood; up until that time, divas had provided their own costumes. Later, the figure of the costume designer had a decisive role in determining the success of the protagonist and consequently of the films. A well-known costume designer of those years was Travilla.