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He colored the world

pink

when the world was not (and is not) pink at all.

It's more like grey.

But maybe that's also why the Fashion Awards jury voted Pierpaolo Piccioli stylist of the year.

His friend, actress Florence Pugh, presented him with the award in London.

He thanked him with an emotional, human, powerful speech, in which he told a lot about himself.

A man who believes in teams, in the family, in the values ​​and rights that must always be defended and who, above all, believes in

fashion as a political message,

as an act of rebellion, as a force: "That's why I love my job ".

This 55-year-old Italian from Nettuno - a town located 60 kilometers from Rome - always returns to his hometown even though he travels to London, Paris, New York, Los Angeles... He has been with Valentino since 1999. A dream life.

And a tattoo signed by the other PPP (Pierpaolo Pasolini):

"We don't want to run out of dreams so soon."

"That to me is a strength.

Because dreams make us who we are.

I chose the language of fashion to express myself.

This was a year of radical choices: the

all-pink show and Haute Couture in Rome's Spanish Steps,

where I showcased people who would never have been accepted 30 years ago."

In said parade, Piccioli used the same suits to cover men and women, with interchangeable clothing between genders: "There is no going back from messages like this. To get to that I made a journey made up of many moments. And perhaps the most radical thing was the pandemic. It meant for me the awareness that fashion was my language and that with it I could say exactly what I thought. I felt strongly that responsibility to

have a voice and to use it."

From Nettuno, every morning, by train to the IED in Rome: was I a provincial to the other boys? They didn't make fun of me, I was just what I was, and that was precisely my forte.

Never belonging to a place or a group led me to make different decisions.

At 20 years old you can feel alone, but after that it becomes your power.

Identity allows us to be who we are.

As Borges said: "We are our memory and an infinity of changing forms."

And it's true.

I don't want to forget the boy who looked at fashion with enchanted eyes, like something far away.

I want to keep that distance that allows me not to feel the weight of responsibility, but only the strength.

He Played with dolls?

Dolls?

Not at all, as a child he wanted to be a director. From Ppp to Ppp: it was written that he had to tattoo Pasolini's phrase. I like freethinkers, and he was.

He was a visionary who spoke of undemocratic Italy, as it is today.

He was a man of the left, not accepted by the left. Are you referring to the current political situation? History has shown that rights must not only be won, but also defended.

I say this as a citizen and as a person.

Obama's America seemed like a conquest, for example, but what happened?

Never let your guard down.It seems that Italian stylists are good at playing politics with fashion.Maybe.

We understand its value, yes: with conscience and authority.

The provocation is another story.

Fashion becomes powerful when it subtly conveys its message.

It is a language, a bit like writing.

Why dark glasses, even at night?

Wasn't Piccioli's worker's uniform enough for you: sneakers, a T-shirt or sweatshirt, and black pants? On stage, when I went up to collect the award, I was wearing a tuxedo, but I consider the sweatshirt and glasses to be part of me.

Anyway, they didn't give me the model of the year award, so... Red carpet with the family: his wife Simona and his children, Pietro, Benedetta and Stella.

Another powerful message. Family is always with you, even if you don't win.

They are my safe haven and teach me every day to be a better man.

I learn more from my children than they can learn from me: every day they show me things from different and unexpected perspectives.

I wanted to share this moment with them because that's who I am.

I am the person and the creative director.

The family and the team, without them I would not be here.

And this victory also belongs to Giancarlo Giammetti and Valentino Garavani, who created this company.

My work is not a lifestyle, but a community, and I did not win alone, but with everyone.

According to the criteria of The Trust Project

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