september2014
28
FLYTO
milanlinate
and
milanmalpensa
threetimesdaily.
brusselsairlines.com
Wheredoyougo inMilan for clothes?
“Forclothes?For
clothes? [laughs
incredulously] Idon’t
shopanywhere for
clothes.Here, ofcourse!”
10CorsoComo, 10corsocomo.com
What aboutbooks?
“Ooh,MilanoLibri…
it’sverygood”
ViaGiuseppeVerdi 2,+3902875871
Andart?
“FondazioneMarconi.
Yes, for sure, forme
it’s thebest”
ViaTadino 15,+390229419232
We’vegot a fewhours inMilan,
whereshouldwego?
“I like towalkand I like
togo to thechurches
–not somuch for
religionbut for the
design. InMilan there
areamazingchurches,
withdifferentarchitects
from theRomanic
periodandbeautiful
paintings. Iknow it’s
strangebut I recommend
a tourof thechurches.”
thatsmilan.it/guide/chiese
Carla’schoice
Whensheplaceddelightfullyobscure
work fromphotographers, artistsand
fashiondesignersat oneaddress, the
Milanese–accustomed to theplethoraof
art galleriesalreadyon their doorstep–
wereshockedbut intrigued. Slowly they
drifted to thisstrangestore, named for its
address,where they foundaphotography
studio, restaurant, bookstore, gallery,
boutiquehotel and fashionspace runbyan
ex-
Vogue
and
Elle
editorwhoseonly
concernwas tomakea “livingmagazine”.
“When I first opened thegallery,
photographywasnot seenasart, so
everyone thought itwasstrange,” says
Sozzani. “When I opened the fashionstore
downstairs itwasevenstranger. But I think
Milanoneededsomethingdifferent and
I believedvery, verystrongly in it.”
Thisbelief explainswhy theCarlaSozzani
gallery is free toenter. Thismonth’sshow
iscalled
Bettina
–a tribute to thepostwar
Dior andGivenchycouturemuse,with
worksbyphotographers includingCartier-
BressonandDoisneauondisplay.
It didn’t take long for 10CorsoComo to
gather acult-like following.When I first
visited, at 16,Madonnawas in the fashion
store. I bought thesamepair of trousers
shedid,whichweresoexpensiveand
unconventional that I had to liveon
bananas for the rest ofmy trip. Today, the
clientele is just asvaried. At lunch, the
restaurantwaitersserveanArgentine
exchangestudent, a familyof four from
Shanghai andaMilanesemanwhose
handkerchiefmatcheshis tieandsocks. In
the fashionstore, aRussiangirl isscolded
by theshopassistant for pickingupa
silver, unwearable-lookingZahaHadid-
designedwedge.When I askher howshe
appeals tosomanydifferent people,
Sozzani shrugs.
“I don’t thinkabout it, because if youdo
youget obsessedwithwhat isnew,what is
in,what isnot in. Iwasnever interested in
that,” shesays. “10CorsoComocame
fromwhat I knewand it camenaturally.
I saw that itwasmuchmore interesting to
communicatewithpeopleandexchange
ideas thisway.”
Whilenot officiallyMilanese (shewas
born inMantua), Sozzani settled in thecity
after studyingatMilan’sBocconi University.
Sheandher sisterFranca (
Vogue Italia
’s
editor-in-chief) formapowerful fashion
coupleandareoftenphotographedat arm
inarmat fashionweeks.
“Milan ismorebeautiful thanpeople
think,” saysSozzani. “It’san inspiringcity,
aculturedplacewithanamazingpast and
great design. I also like thequalityof life–
youcan relaxandhaveaverygood lunch
but still work. It’sagoodbalance.”
Likemanypeoplewhomakea living
from their passion, Sozzani isaworkaholic.
Reelsof blackandwhitephotos from
fashionshowsare litteredacrossher desk;
anavalancheof fashionmagazines
plunging, ski-slopestyle, to the floor. There
arepilesof oldnewspapersandpaper
flowerspeekingout fromunder a rubbleof
clothes. Sketchesandphotosof Sozzani
with friendsand familyare tacked to the
walls, illuminatedby thesunblazing
through thewindow.
MILANOSTYLE
Left:Heroffice isCarlaSozzani’s favouriteplace
to retreat from theworld.Above: 10CorsoComo’s
bookstore focusesonart
MilanoLibri
Fondazione
Marconi
