ACME and the Association of Design and Fashion in Asturias (ADYMO), unite to obtain the recognition merited by the fashion sector of our country and present the candidature of the designer from Cordoba, Elio Berhanyer, to the Princess of Asturias Award for the Arts 2017.
Never before has been awarded, nor even been accepted to be presented to these prestigious awards, any candidature of personalities representing the fashion world, a creative industry key to the economy of our country accounting for 2.9% of GDP and 4.2% of employment. Spain is also a world reference in the fashion industry with large companies such as Inditex, Mango or Grupo Cortefiel, and is also relevant for being the birthplace of important creators who have marked the history of international fashion such as Mariano Fortuny, Cristóbal Balenciaga and the aforementioned Elio Berhanyer.
A self-taught creator, his humble origin was not an impediment to rise as one of the highest exponents of Spanish haute couture. His sensitivity and talent led him to start as a creator of theatre costumes. It was precisely from the scene where he made the leap to fashion, opening his own studio in 1960 which was visited by great artists from the international scene, such as Ava Gardner, Cyd Charisse, Lucia Bosé, the Duchess of Alba and Queen Sofia herself. The success of Elio’s creations was such that he came to have more than 200 points of sale in Spain after the arrival of prêt-à-porter in the 70s, a new era to which he was able to adapt with mastery, exquisitely moving the values of haute couture to the serial production of his collections.
Elio Berhanyer revolutionized the concept of uniform with his costume creations for Iberia stewardesses, prized at the IATA International Contest in 1970. His talent has been recognized with numerous awards such as the Cadillac Award as Best Designer of the Year in New York (1970), the Campioni Prize in Italy (1991), the Gold Medal for Merit in Fine Arts (2002) and the National Fashion Design Award (2013). He is also Doctor Honoris Causa from Harvard University and holds a Chair with his name at the Textile Technology Center (CITTA).
Current Spanish fashion would not be what it is without the figure of Elio Berhanyer. Enormously committed to the sector, he was one of the founders of the Asociación de Creadores de Moda de España in 1998, of which he has been an Honorary Associate since 2012.
If you want to support this candidacy, sign our proposal at change.org.[:]
