Rediscovering Ferdinando Sarmi: a journey in fashion from Florence to Fifth Avenue

Until December 31st, with Ferdinando Sarmi New York - A Journey Through Fashion from Florence to Fifth Avenue, the Museum of Fashion and Costume at Palazzo Pitti is committed to making Italy rediscover a figure who remained in the shadows, yet enjoyed enormous success abroad.

Born in Ravenna into a noble family, Ferdinando Sarmi found his fortune in 1951 when he participated in the historic fashion show organized by Giovanni Battista Giorgini at Villa Torrigiani, an event that launched Made in Italy abroad. There, he met Elisabeth Arden, who invited him to New York, where he went to be directore of fashion line of the Arden brand.
In 1958, he set out on his own, founding the Sarmi New York brand and opening his own atelier. He became extremely popular. Able to combine American glamour with the elegance of Italian style, Sarmi dressed numerous celebrities, including Audrey Hepburn, Barbra Streisand, Marilyn Monroe, Marlene Dietrich, Lily Pons, Wallis Simpson, Duchess of Windsor, and First Lady Pat Nixon.
He was recognized for his use of innovative fabrics such as tie-dyed silk chiffon and unusual materials such as goose down for evening gowns.

The exhibition, first of its kind, traces Sarmi's twenty-year career, from the early 1950s to the early 1970s, through a selection of the designer's iconic dresses, along with period accessories and pieces from the Sarmi Collection preserved at the Museum of Fashion and Costume.