On 11 May 1871, Mariano Fortuny y Madrazo was born in Granada, in the ancient Moorish capital of Spain, more precisely in the Fonda de los Siete Suelos at the foot of the Alhambra. The second son of the famous painter Mariano Fortuny y Marsal, Mariano grew up in a cosmopolitan environment, divided between Italy, Spain and France. With such an intense family heritage, following in his father’s footsteps seemed natural, but Fortuny would soon exceed all expectations, establishing himself as one of the greatest innovators of the 20th century.

Venice and insatiable curiosity

In 1889, his mother, Cecilia de Madrazo, decided to leave Paris and move to Venice, in an attempt to alleviate her son’s allergies caused by horses. The lagoon city, already loved by his father, turned out to be the ideal place to nurture young Mariano’s talent and insatiable curiosity. His fascination for Wagner’s opera, destined to become a constant inspiration in his career, was born here. The pictorial experiments of these years lay the foundations for his future innovations, fusing art, science and technique in an entirely personal visual language.

“Nothing is created without memory: modernity is the daughter of the past”
Mariano Fortuny

Henriette and the creative partnership

During a stay in Paris to further his research into theatre, Mariano Fortuny met Henriette Negrin, who was to become his muse, life companion and artistic partner. From their meeting, in 1902, an extraordinary sentimental and creative union was born. Once settled in Venice, the two founded a textile workshop in Palazzo Pesaro degli Orfei, now known as the Fortuny Museum. It was here that iconic dresses such as the pleated silk Delphos, velvet garments decorated with ethnic motifs or the revolutionary lamps of the current Studio 1907 collection were born, symbols of timeless elegance and a still unsurpassed approach to theatrical lighting.

The city of Venice, a crossroads between East and West, provides the perfect backdrop for this inimitable production, becoming not just a setting, but an integral part of their work.

A legacy that lives on

When Fortuny died in 1949, Henriette preserved his creative legacy, continuing to work for years in the Venetian workshop. After his death, it seemed that the secret of those creations was destined to vanish. And yet, thanks to the intuition of a young Venetian, Lino Lando, in the 1980s the dream took shape once again: the pleating process was reconstructed, paving the way for a renewed creative chapter inspired by Fortuny’s artisanal heritage which continues to this day with the production of handcrafted masterpieces such as velvet evening coats, lamps, and clothing accessories.

Sources:
I Fortuny, una Storia di Famiglia, Palazzo Fortuny, Venice, 2019
Mariano Fortuny. His Life and Work, Guillermo de Osma, V&A Publishing, 2015