The fourth Premio Maestri d’Eccellenza has recognised Italian textile art, contemporary tailoring and illuminated sculpture, with another honour for Sicilian puppet-making.
Luxury often starts far from the finished object, in the workshops where someone still knows how to weave, cut, carve or shape a material by hand. The fourth Premio Maestri d’Eccellenza brought that part of the industry into the spotlight in Rome, with LVMH and Fondazione Bvlgari recognising Italian makers across three categories and an additional special mention.
The ceremony took place at Bvlgari Hotel Roma and involved Confartigianato Imprese and Camera Nazionale della Moda Italiana. The awards are intended to support expertise that can disappear when businesses and crafts are judged only by the finished retail product.
A family weaving tradition
Carlo Colombo of Tessitura la Colombina received the experienced-artisan award for textile art. The family company traces its history to a silk mill founded in 1895 and has developed through generations of handweaving and related work.
That continuity matters to collectors of textiles and interiors because repeatable hand skills can be difficult to recreate once a workshop closes. It also illustrates the long development behind materials that appear effortless in a luxury setting.
New directions in tailoring and light
Lorenzo Seghezzi received the emerging-artisan award for contemporary tailoring, with corsetry central to the Milan label he founded in 2021. Mirei Monticelli received the innovation distinction for illuminated sculptures made using banaca, an abaca-derived fibre developed through work in the Philippines and completed in her Italian studio.
These practices occupy different corners of design, but both transform an inherited technique through contemporary form. The recognition is tied to craftsmanship and innovation rather than to a mass-production fashion launch.
An additional honour for Sicilian puppetry
At the jury’s request, Daniel Mauceri of Arte Pupara dal 1978 received a special mention for work preserving the Syracuse puppet-making tradition. His workshop combines restoration and creation with an educational and performance space.
The programme offers the three principal winners €10,000 each for their businesses, alongside media exposure, mentoring opportunities and production-site visits. Such support may be modest beside the global luxury market, but it is tangible for an independent atelier.
Why craftsmanship belongs in the lifestyle conversation
Yacht interiors, private homes, couture and collectible design frequently depend on workshops that operate outside the public spotlight. Recognising their work gives buyers a clearer idea of what sits behind individual objects and custom commissions.
The awards do not mean these artisans are supplying a particular yacht or fashion house. Their stories instead demonstrate the range of skills that remain essential to material culture and the wider luxury economy.
Source: LVMH’s full announcement and award recipients. The short source link below leads to the official LVMH newsroom.
Source
LVMH / Fondazione Bvlgari