Fashion as Rehabilitation

The Times reports on an Italian cooperative known as Project Alice that is teaching rehabilitation to inmates in Milanese prisons through the art of fashion design.

‘Rehabilitation in Italy comes in a fashionable form, you see. You may be
serving 15 years for murder but that’s no reason to let standards slip.
Female inmates at this Milanese secure unit have the option to take a course
in fashion design. Last week they held a fashion show in the prison grounds
to show off creations by Alberta Ferretti and Pollini, and are set to
collaborate with major Italian designers such as Anna Molinari of Blumarine’.

Having already created costumes for both TV and La Scala theatre productions, the project teaches both design and production, aiming to instill useable skills to help the women make something of their lives. Up next is the inmates creation of their own fashion brand, led by the guidance of Anna Molinari, which will be available in stores within the next couple of months under the label Gatti
Galeotti – Jail-cats!

With celebrities finding it increasingly hard to stay out of prison, maybe this is the start of a whole new trend- incarceration chic??!