The Bite Magazine - Spring 2016 - Issue 15

G iorgio A rmani Jada Brookes discovers the sincere character behind designer Giorgio Armani in his self-written book. bitebookreview I n Giorgio Armani , a book written by the designer himself, we get an insight into his life as a child growing up in Piacenza, a city on the banks of the River Po, not far from Milan in Italy. The book chronicles his early career as a fashion designer, his designs and some of the men and women who wore them in the form of pictures. In a childhood that saw “only families that were quite well-off could afford to own a car” and a telephone which he described as “a heavy, clunky black object”, Armani goes on to explain, “The only place you could see a white phone was in the movies, which were, in fact called ‘white telephone films’. It was many years before I used a telephone for the first time; I remem- ber it being an unfamiliar and awkward experience.” The designer and his family lived a “simple but quiet life” until the SecondWorld War broke out which saw his father employed as an office clerk at a local Fascists headquarters and his older brother join the special Flamme Blanche (White Flame) squads.“My family abided by the rules of the regime but held very different beliefs; my parents, like many others, secretly listened to Radio London. I was too young to fully comprehend it all, as I didn’t understand why my parents would want to pay attention to those responsible for bombing our cities.” Life during the war had its ups and downs: Armani reveals his love of the theatre which he shared with his brother, his mother who was a “self-confident woman” and the effects of the war on him and his family.When the war finally ended, Armani’s father and brother having worked for the regime had to go into hiding for a season. After moving to Milan with his family, movies started to play a major role in his life. “My rela- tionship with movies has always been very strong, eventually even marking the various stages of my career in fashion.