- About
- Programmes
- campus
- Admissions
- Careers & Placement
- Experience
- Contact
Our Master in Fabrics Innovation Design students have completed “Ratti, Heritage & Innovation”, an Industry Project developed in collaboration with Ratti, the historic Italian textile company founded in Como in 1945 by Antonio Ratti.
Led by Project Leader Mirko Bottai, the students spent several weeks exploring the relationship between textile heritage, research, experimentation and innovation, starting from one of the company’s most significant assets: the Ratti Archive.
An ever-evolving collection documenting Ratti’s production from the first silk scarf designed by Antonio Ratti in 1945 to the present day, the Archive provided the starting point for the brief assigned to the students.
Each student was invited to select and reinterpret one of the macro-themes identified by the company, including Paisley, florals, geometrics, landscapes, animal prints, lace, equestrian themes, sport, fruit and vegetables, and botanical motifs, transforming it through personal research into a contemporary textile proposal. The ultimate aim was to develop different textile typologies across Apparel, Soft Accessories, Home Décor and Outdoor Décor.
The project encouraged students to go beyond a purely aesthetic reinterpretation of the Archive. Beginning with a conceptual and visual analysis of their chosen theme, each student developed an individual creative direction through colour palettes, patterns, engineered prints, textures and variations, while simultaneously exploring textile bases and their qualities of transparency, opacity, weight and materiality.
Visual research, sketchbooks, experimentation and print development came together in the creation of individual collections, shaped through a dialogue between textile culture, personal creativity and a professional approach to design.
The project concluded with the Final Presentation, during which the students presented their projects and shared the entire creative process, from their initial research to the development of materials and final outcomes.
Francesca Casartelli, Textile Product Manager at Ratti, joined the Final Presentation, giving students the opportunity to engage directly with an industry professional and present their work within a setting closely connected to the realities and dynamics of the textile industry.
Industry Projects are a key part of the educational approach at Accademia Costume & Moda, connecting students with companies and industry professionals through real-world briefs and transforming research and experimentation into meaningful opportunities for direct engagement with the fashion industry.
Within the Master in Fabrics Innovation Design, this dialogue becomes a way of exploring the future of textile design through an understanding of heritage, materials and processes: because innovation also means learning how to read, reinterpret and transform what came before.
Our sincere thanks to Ratti for sharing its textile heritage, expertise and design culture with our students, giving them the opportunity to engage with an extraordinary archive and with a company that has contributed to the evolution of Italian textile design for over eighty years.
