Fior di Sardegna
The new Antonio Marras Resort 25 collection is titled “Fior di Sardegna” [Flowers of Sardinia] in honor of the debut novel by renowned writer Grazia Deledda, encapsulating a range of feminine philosophies.
Various feminine philosophies serve as the foundation of the collection: poetic thought merges with the passion of Eva Mameli Calvino, the first woman in Italy to earn a degree in botany, dedicating her life to plants.
Hanbury Botanical Garden, Ventimiglia, Liguria, Italy
Hanbury Botanical Garden,
Ventimiglia, Liguria, Italy
In 1981, Fabrizio De André released an autobiographicalalbum, bearing his name, dedicated to both the Sardiniancommunity and the community of Native Americans inthe United States.
The singer-songwriter poet wrote:
“I am far more Sardinian than those who, having beenborn by chance in Sardinia, have chosen to live in Rome,” and again, “Life in Sardinia is perhaps the best a man canhope for: twentyfour thousand kilometers of forests,countryside, and coastline immersed in a miraculous seawould be exactly what I would advise the good Lord to giveus as Paradise.”
The album in which he compares the American Indiansto the Sardinian people, sensing something more thana correspondence, a simple analogy, dates from 1981.Being Sardinian is always a matter of becoming, and notof being; of differences, and not of identity. Sardinian“independentism,” perhaps, should start over from here,from two symbolic figures, Sardinians and Indians, whoare no different, in terms of the experiences they live orare subject to, to the “other” characters the author alwayssang about.
The collection stems from the purity, the wondrous gracefulness and the multi-coloured palette of flowers. Their intense colours, shapes and fragrance are expressed through a series of unique patterns and the striking visual effect associated with the world of Antonio Marras, for a poetic, lightweight and fluid look. Unusual stripes, checks and damasks combine with printed or embroidered tiny flowers, bouquets and intricate ramage patterns that represent Ferula and other typical Sardinian flora.
The collection showcases flowy dresses, sinuous silhouettes, tailored suits, and oversized jackets in yellow, off-white, military green, biscuit, black, and bold pink. Saturated tones blend with soft sage green and pale pink, creating striking contrasts, while fresh fabrics like lace and satin evoke the lightness of spring flowers.
The artful layering of striking and simple forms, and essential, precious materials delivers an opulence that is balanced with rigour, for a romantic yet decisive mood across the collection.
While the connection to nature and Antonio Marras’s native Sardinia lies at the core, the collection also nods to the sense of evolution, dreams, and freedom that defined the Seventies, embracing an aesthetic of change and, finally, completing the circle, the poetic spirit of those times.
Religions, mysticism and symbolism are the ingredients that still fascinate those who approach the history andway of life of Native Americans and the footsteps of themost famous Indian chiefs, but also the artifacts and symbologies that characterise a savoirfaire that remembersstories and legends.
De André speaks of American Indians and Sardinian shepherds, juxtaposing their similar existences with thesentiment that is most congenial to him and which is thefundamental principle of his philosophy: that solidaritywhich means common feeling, being a sharer in the painof others as the only way to the good and peace of all men. Sardinians and Native Americans share the defence oftheir diversity, the irregular life of those who live amongmountains or grasslands, between the sky, the woods andthe water of seas or streams.
In 1981, Fabrizio De André released an autobiographicalalbum, bearing his name, dedicated to both the Sardiniancommunity and the community of Native Americans inthe United States.
The singer-songwriter poet wrote:
“I am far more Sardinian than those who, having beenborn by chance in Sardinia, have chosen to live in Rome,” and again, “Life in Sardinia is perhaps the best a man canhope for: twentyfour thousand kilometers of forests,countryside, and coastline immersed in a miraculous seawould be exactly what I would advise the good Lord to giveus as Paradise.”
The album in which he compares the American Indiansto the Sardinian people, sensing something more thana correspondence, a simple analogy, dates from 1981.Being Sardinian is always a matter of becoming, and notof being; of differences, and not of identity. Sardinian“independentism,” perhaps, should start over from here,from two symbolic figures, Sardinians and Indians, whoare no different, in terms of the experiences they live orare subject to, to the “other” characters the author alwayssang about.
Bloom is Result to meet a Flower
And casually glance
Would cause one scarcely to suspect
The minor Circumstance
Assisting in the Bright Affair
So intricately done
Then offered as a Butterfly
To the Meridian
To pack the Bud oppose the Worm
Obtain its right of Dew
Adjust the Heat elude the Wind
Escape the prowling Bee
Great Nature not to disappoint
Awaiting Her that Day —
To be a Flower, is profound
Responsibility.
- Emily Dickinson
To be a flower is profound responsibility. And so, just as Emily Dickinson recounts in her verses, Antonio Marras conceives the new 2025 Resort Collection.
Hanbury Botanical Garden, Ventimiglia, Liguria, Italy
Hanbury Botanical Garden,
Ventimiglia, Liguria, Italy