On July 8th in Matera, Mediterranean City of Culture and Dialogue 2026, the first of the two evenings of the Città dei Sassi Fashion Award was held. The event, promoted by “Officina della Cultura”, reaches its fifteenth edition. It was Saverio Barone, an artist from Salerno, who opened the evening dedicated to emerging designers.
Saverio’s journey in fashion began with his exploration of painting. He is a painter who founded the “Emozionismo Riflessivo” (Reflective Emotionism) movement. Starting from emotion, Saverio Barone fixes colors on canvas and creates paintings of great visual impact. But his creativity doesn’t stop here, even though he exhibits his paintings in solo and group shows in Italy and abroad. The ambitious idea is to enter the world of fashion by printing his designs on fabric and creating scarves and garments being authentic works of two arts in fusion: painting and tailoring.
Saverio Barone, whose creativity we had the chance to admire during the first runway show of the Matera Città dei Sassi Fashion Award, brought to the catwalk bright colours combined with boldness and a desire to amaze. Such a unique collection earned the well-deserved success of both the jury and the audience.
Once the Matera’s Fashion Award is finished, we speak with the painter and fashion designer focusing on his creations, which we define as “Art à porter”: painting that becomes wearable and thus transforms into fashion.
Saverio, where does your desire to unite art and fashion come from?
It comes from the need to give art a space without boundaries. With Reflective Emotionism I felt the canvas had become a limit: emotion was asking to go beyond. Fashion allows me to transform the work into a living experience, in a movement, capable of accompanying the body and telling a story. For me, art is everything that manages to communicate authentic emotions. Every garment becomes a canvas coming to life, an extension. Through this collection I am not just showcasing garments — I am telling the story of myself.
We met at the Vibo Valentia Art Biennale. What impact did that event have on your creativity?
My journey began with the creation of artistic scarves, an experience I brought to Vibo Valentia, in Calabria, where I produced my creations and stamped on canvas those of other artists. It was there that I understood how involved the public was when art left the canvas to become something to wear and live. This vision accompanied me to the fashion events of Milan and Cannes where I brought Reflective Emotionism into a new dimension.
From the Vibo Valentia event to today: what has happened to Saverio Barone the painter and to your fashion brand?
Calabria, Milan and Cannes made me understand that Reflective Emotionism could go beyond the canvas. The public’s passion for my artistic scarves pushed me to create an ER logo, where art and fashion meet. Every creation becomes a work in motion, capable of communicating emotions.
How and why did you choose the Matera Città dei Sassi Fashion Award for your artistic promotion?
I chose the Matera’s Fashion Award because it is a place where history, art and beauty meet. Matera, with its evocative strength and unique heritage, represents the ideal context for bringing Reflective Emotionism, a language that aims to go beyond boundaries and transform art into emotions to be lived.
How did you feel in the role of a designer taking part in such an important fashion event?
Stepping into this role was an exciting tiptoe entrance into this world of fashion. It allowed me to express my artistic language, bringing it to the runway alongside other great fashion designers.
What impressions and emotions are you taking home from Matera?
From Matera I’m taking away an experience and also a conclusion: my journey can dialogue with different worlds.
Since you became a fashion designer, how has your painting changed?
My painting hasn’t changed, it has expanded. It has found new spaces of expression. The body enters into dialogue with the garment. Colour no longer remains still on the canvas or fabric, it expands, it moves and seems to evaporate into a universe of lights and shadows. The garment becomes an extension of the work, a place where art, body and space meet.
What collaborations have been born or are about to be born thanks to the Matera event?
It’s still too early to talk about collaborations, but Matera has opened important possibilities and new contacts. We are carefully evaluating opportunities, always in line with my vision.
Now that the Fashion Award is over, which fashion events will you take part in with your creations? Which art exhibitions will you participate in as a painter?
At the moment we haven’t decided yet, we are evaluating for the exhibitions.
We have postponed everything to September. I was absorbed by this Matera project: the tension was high.
Would you recommend an emerging designer to take part in the Matera Città dei Sassi Fashion Award? Why?
My advice to an emerging designers is to believe in their own identity and to bring to the runway something that truly tells who they are. Fashion is not just technique and beauty, but emotion, research and the ability to communicate a personal vision.
Thanking Saverio Barone for his availability, we let our readers discover his art and look forward to updates on his creative journey.
photo by Vincenzo Testa
Olga Matsyna
