Triennale Milano and Kiton Present an Unprecedented Collaboration on the Theme of Craftsmanship Training

Triennale Milano and Kiton present the exhibition Tailoring School. A journey into education – curated by Luca Stoppini, advisor to the fashion archive of the Triennale's Museum of Italian Design – an integral part of a professional training project inspired by the experience of the Tailoring School, founded in 2000 by Kiton. Completing the exhibition, which can be visited from January 13 to 16, 2024, in Triennale's Salone d’Onore, is a series of events organised with local schools to showcase the training experience, while spreading awareness of a virtuous model suitable for replication in other contexts.

Tailoring school. A journey into education follows the development of the Kiton Tailoring School, a top-flight training project which, for twenty-three years now, has ensured that the traditions needed to keep the art of tailoring alive in the world have continued to be taught. The exhibition also explores the cultural heritage and tailoring tradition of Naples, which are both a part of the school's birth right.

The exhibition Tailoring school. A journey into education offers visitors an in-depth look at the activities of the Kiton Tailoring School, from whose headquarters in the Town of Arzano (Province of Naples) twenty-five young tailors are placed in the working world at the end of each course of study. This joint effort of Triennale and Kiton is designed to highlight the importance of skilled craftsmanship, for, at a time when technological experimentation has become a part of day-to-day life, while there is starting to be talk of the types of practical assistance that artificial intelligence could offer mankind, it is of vital importance that specific professional skills which must be handed down from one generation of artisans to the next be kept alive, in light of the crucial role they play in the operations of leading enterprises in a variety of sectors. The school makes a critical contribution to passing on the skills acquired by craftsmen of years past, the kind of know-how that can never be replaced by technology alone, while its efforts also focus on refining, teaching and cultivating the natural "hand and eye" gifts that students entering into this course of training must possess. 

The exhibition presents visitors with a replica of a classroom of the Tailoring School, allowing them to see how the students of the Three-Year Class of 2022-2025, the 9th course in the School's history, work with the master tailors who instruct them during a typical day of training. A brief documentary illustrates the school's activities, its history and its potential for the future, with voices that include that of Antonio De Matteis, the CEO of Kiton, and Silverio Paone, the company's production manager. There are also interviews with Stefano Boeri, President of Triennale Milano, and Carla Morogallo, Triennale Milano's General Director, who address the importance of vocational training when it comes to preserving master craftsmanship.

During the opening days of the exhibition, visits were organised to a number of schools in the area, including NABA – Nuova accademia di belle arti, Istituto Marangoni, Scuola Cova, Istituto Istruzione Superiore Caterina da Siena Milano and I-crea Academy.
Triennale Milano’s institutional partners Lavazza Group and Salone del Mobile.Milano Furniture Fair also support this exhibition.

Please contact triennale@alphakilo.com for more information.