Cristóbal Balenciaga in Florence: The Forgotten Legacy of Couture Copies

As the history of Italian fashion has long favored designers and brands that achieved international fame, little is known about Italian copyist sartorie. Since their specialty was the copy and adaptation of French couture, their histories did not contribute to the promotion of Made in Italy fashion, and their presence, along with the material traces left by their businesses, was largely overlooked by historiography. The forgotten biography of a late-1950s polka dot cocktail dress, donated to the Museum of Costume and Fashion at Palazzo Pitti in Florence as “a Balenciaga”, serves as a focal point for this article. Its owner, Liana Bertolli, and the three Florentine copyist sartorie she and her family patronized offer the possibility to trace how Balenciaga’s original designs were accessed, copied, and adapted for Italian clients by Florence-based dressmakers. The article draws on garments and archival, oral, and documentary sources to reposition the work of sartorie Magnani, Calabri, and Sorelle Chiostri within the broader, transnational history of twentieth century couture, revealing the circulation of Balenciaga’s legacy beyond Paris and into the wardrobes of Italian well-to-do women.