After Greece's Refusal, Gucci Moves Event To Florence With Promise To Restore Boboli Gardens

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The Boboli Gardens at the Uffizi Gallery. Image Wikimedia Commons.

After Greece's refusal to allow Gucci to use the Parthenon for a June 2017 runway how -- in exchange for a large donation for restoration of the site, the Italian luxury brand has turned to the Palazzo Pitti in Florence, Italy to stage the event at its Galleria Palantina on May 29. 

The $2.13 million allocated for the event space will be used now to restore the Boboli Gardens at the Uffizi Gallery. In announcing the agreement, Gucci CEO Marco Bizzarri said sarcastically: "I guess that Greece's fiscal situation is in better shape than Italy's."  Both economies are under siege, but Italy has very successfully turned to Italy's finest luxury brands to restore its most historic sites, with the full understanding that tourism is imperative to Italy's financial future.

Currently, less than 20 of the 33 acres comprising the gardens are accessible to the public. The Gucci funds will open the entire green space.

Of the agreement, Italy’s culture minister, Dario Franceschini, commented:

“Fashion is also part of our cultural heritage and our history. In our country, taste, elegance, and education in what is beautiful are part of our day-to-day lives.”

“The connection between fashion and art has always been a close one, and it has been often conducive to striking and unique occasions, like this one, where a prestigious Italian fashion brand has decided to invest in an important cultural landmark, while appreciating its mission,” he added.

Gowanus Brooklyn Batcave Set For Herzog & de Meuron Transformation To Support Creative Economy

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Gowanus Brooklyn Batcave Set For Herzog & de Meuron Transformation To Support Creative Economy

The Pritzker Prize-winning Herzog & de Meuron will transform the Gowanus Batcave into a manufacturing center for the arts. Commissioned by the non-profit Powerhouse Environmental Arts Foundation, which acquired the building in 2012 for $7 million, the property will support Brooklyn's expanding creative economy, with facilities for metal and woodwork, ceramics, textiles and printing. Other spaces will support exhibitions and events at the Powerhouse Workshop. 

That need has been growing more acute, as gentrification pushes out artists, artisans and the small manufacturers who work with them in this highly-specialized boutique sector. The foundation anticipates that the project will create more than 100 jobs and open in 2020.

Greece Refuses Gucci Request To Use Parthenon For Fashion Event & $2 Million Restoration

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The Erechtheum, western side, Acropolis, Athens, Greece. Courtesy ©Wikimedia Commons

Greece's culture ministry rejected a request by luxury brand Gucci to use the ancient Acropolis for a fashion event in June. 

The Acropolis is a World Heritage Site as listed by UNESCO, the United Nations cultural organization. Regarding the Italian luxury house’s request, Greece’s Central Archaeological Council (KAS) stated: “The unique cultural character of the Acropolis monuments is inconsistent with this sort of event.”

“The Parthenon is an important monument and a universal symbol for us Greeks to protect, particularly in light of our ongoing efforts to reunite the Parthenon Marbles,” said Greek Culture Minister Lydia Koniordou regarding the ruling.

“We have a duty to defend the importance of [the Acropolis]…a global symbol of democracy and freedom,” she stressed. Gucci offered  a €2 million subsidy for restoration at the site. 

With precious restoration funds in short supply, the Italians have a very different relationship with luxury fashion brands funding the restoration of important landmarks. In November 2015 Rome's Trevi Fountain reopened after a 16-month $2.2 million restoration. 

“It’s very emotional, especially for us Romans,” the luxury brand’s designer Silvia Venturini Fendi, told AFP at the reopening of the famous site. Fendi CEO Pietro Beccari agreed to fund the restoration as a “gesture of love” to Rome.