Bologna is the lifeblood of Magliano, the 2017-founded Italian label helmed by Luca Magliano, who continues to live and work in the city at a purposeful distance from the world’s fashion capitals. A rising star of Italian fashion, having won the Karl Lagerfeld Award at the LVMH Prize in 2023 and appearing as a guest designer at Pitti Uomo the same year, his work draws on Bologna’s revolutionary spirit and thriving subcultures. The result is twisted riffs on classic menswear, warped and subverted in the designer’s distinctive style. ‘It is about treating with a wild irony a stereotypical ideal of manhood by messing with the fundamentals of a classic wardrobe,’ he told Wallpaper* in 2023.
Here, taken from the September 2024 Style Issue of Wallpaper*, the non-conformist designer takes us on a tour of his home town – from a museum of queer history to a ‘monumental and mystical’ cemetery, and gelato pit-stop for every mood.
Luca Magliano’s guide to Bologna, Italy
Certosa di Bologna
‘A monumental and mystical cemetery, located just outside the walls of the city.’
Villa Cassarini Gardens’ pink triangle
‘In 1990, a pink triangular plaque was unveiled in the Villa Cassarini Gardens as a memorial to all the homosexuals persecuted under the Nazi regime. It was the second memorial of its kind, after one in Amsterdam, and is a symbol of political determination.’
CDoc Cassero
‘This LGBTQIA+ centre is a cultural and political space that has shaped the city since 1982. Inside, you will find the Centro Documentazione Flavia Madaschi, the queer Italian archive par excellence.’
Roberto ‘Freak’ Antoni statue
‘The 2018 statue of the leader of the band Skiantos shows the singer coming out of a toilet with a propulsion backpack. Skiantos’ song Gelati was the finale of one of our shows.’
Museo per la Memoria di Ustica
‘In 1980, a plane carrying 81 people, which had departed from Bologna, was shot down in the Tyrrhenian Sea. The cause of this tragedy became a state secret, and the truth was buried. Christian Boltanski’s permanent installation, featuring the plane’s wreckage, pays homage to the lost lives.’
Gelaterie
‘I never really understood the relationship between ice cream and Bologna, but all the ice cream shops here are delicious. These are my favourite ones: Stefino, for the best vegan offerings; La Sorbetteria Castiglione, if you’re heartbroken; and Il Gelatauro, for midnight indulgence.’
stefino.it, lasorbetteria.it, gelatauro.com
Casa Morandi
‘Giorgio Morandi, an artist famous for his rarefied still-life paintings, once said he was painting the air of Bologna. His museum-house is the essence of Bolognese chic, with the most beautiful colours in the world.’
Trattoria Da Vito
‘This trattoria opened in 1949 and hasn’t changed since – more than half a century of tagliatelle and card games, run by a family that never really touched the menu.’
This article appears in the September 2024 issue of Wallpaper*, available in print on newsstands, on the Wallpaper* app on Apple iOS, and to subscribers of Apple News +. Subscribe to Wallpaper* today.
