The Diplomat
On Monday 7 April, on the occasion of the National Day of Made in Italy, an event dedicated to the field of Italian fashion and jewellery was held at the residence of the Italian Embassy: Precious ties, choral and cameo from Torre del Greco visit Madrid, together with the Italian Association of Coral and Cameo Entrepreneurs (Assocoral) and the Italian Agency for Foreign Trade (ICE), in order to highlight the exquisite Italian craftsmanship and reaffirm the strong bond between Italy and Spain, two countries with a deep history and shared tradition.
The evening, which was attended by Patricia Conde as a special guest, allowed the public (key figures of design, fashion and jewelry, as well as influential personalities in the sector) to get to know six renowned companies in the sector: Antonino De Simone, Aucella, De Simone Fratelli, Evanueva, Grazia Mazza and Mattia Mazza.
First, the Italian ambassador, Giuseppe Buccino, underlined how “the richness of the art of coral and cameos, in addition to promoting even more new commercial opportunities between Spain and Italy -the Spanish market was in 2024 the one with the highest growth among the first 5 countries customers of Made in Italy products-, represents an opportunity to highlight the best of Italian industry and the excellence that our country represents around the world. Italian know-how, beauty and craftsmanship are condensed into the craft of coral, a symbol of Italian beauty and tradition, but also an example of how sustainability can go hand in hand with craftsmanship”.
The chairman of Assocoral, Vincenzo Aucella, recalled “the peculiarity that has transformed Torre del Greco, a small town between the Vesuvius volcano and the Tyrrhenian Sea, into the world capital of coral and cameos also thanks to the impulse of Ferdinando IV of Bourbon. Today, the tradition of this artisanal production is also protected through the application submitted to the Ministry of Made in Italy to be included among the Protected Geographical Indications (PGI)”.
Then, there was a parade of coral jewels thanks to the institutional collaboration provided by the agency Isabel Navarro (who selected the models), by the school IES Santa Engracia (whose students made up and combed the models) and the European Institute of Design (IED) in Madrid, whose students dressed the models with creations inspired by the iconic babydoll from Balenciaga.
The two sets of jewels chosen by each company paraded before the captivated gaze of the specialists of the sector present, who were also summoned thanks to the collaboration with Madridjoya, the main fair of jewelry in the capital.
Finally, thanks to the Fondazione Cologni, a young craftsman, newly graduated from the Torre del Greco choir and cameo school -the only one of its kind in the world- made a live demonstration of the craftsmanship required to create coral jewelry and cameos.
