PENCIL LINE PURITY
This season, Sabina's research into Italian Renaissance archives has informed a new perspective on her silk silhouettes, leaning into the pared-back aesthetic of her original, uncoloured graphite drawings. Below, the artist reflects on the historical studies defining these refined editions.
"This season, a primary inspiration for my collection was Pisanello’s Codex Vallardi (1380 – 1450). Originally mis-attributed to Leonardo Da Vinci, and now housed at The Louvre in Paris, the codex is a collection of 378 folios of intricate and awe-inspiring pencil, pen, and ink drawings, mainly consisting of animal sketches. It was intended as a book of working studies providing models, guides and templates for Pisanello’s assistants. Pisanello’s painted works are considered ‘jewels of the Quattrocento’, and yet there is a striking beauty in the raw, uncoloured simplicity of the working illustrations, highlighting the skeleton and architecture behind the finished masterpieces.
I chose to pay homage to Pisanello’s unfinished yet expressively emotive sketches by spotlighting the pencil drawings behind my own designs across a small range of clothing this season. The gentle technique also complements the sensation of translucency which threads throughout the Fairytale di Firenze collection; a subtle and sophisticated way to add print to your summer wardrobe."
