Gala Dresses
The Collection of Pupa Carmine Serandrei

Pupa Carmine, a noblewoman from Milan, was born in the first decade of the 1900. She married Count Serandrei, who during the war took part in the reconstruction of the city.
The Count and Countess Serandrei diligently attended every social event and organized celebrations and parties in their villa on the outskirts of Milan.
Pupa died almost ninety years old in the same house, a widow since long and without heirs.
Beatrice Albrici, antiques dealer in Brescia, was invited to the villa to buy the furniture that it contained.
In that occasion it wasn't the walnut cabinets to catch her attention, but what they concealed: 400 dresses of any shape, color, kind and age, accompanied by shoes, bags, hats and jewelry.
Beatrice Albrici, as a woman accustomed for years to compete and collaborate in a male-dominated industry, felt entitled to buy the heritage of haute couture, so different from those antique furniture she was looking for, but at the same time so terribly fascinating.
Seducers of the female psyche, the clothes are not considered as vain whims, but as crystals or silvers, like the pages of a rare autobiographical book, unconsciously written and handed down by Pupa until today.
Every single skirt, jacket, blouse, robe de soir is a masterpiece of high fashion, embroidery, encrustation, sequins, pearls and rhinestones.
Custom made, they tell the story of the style from the 50s up to the fabulous 80s and the evolution of the body of a woman, Pupa, and its extraordinary taste.
The wardrobe of Pupa enjoys great public success: between fashion shows in upscale places, exhibitions and vintage shows, the collection is viewed, appreciated, applauded and over the years partially sold.
To date, the private collection of Beatrice Albrici includes around twenty pieces, the most spectacular, rich and sumptuous.
A real historical memory of stylistic traditions and testimony of the high skilled artisans in northern Italy. Each dress follows a fil-rouge, an eccentric and eclectic allure, conferred by the flair of the Countess herself and translated in 'handmade' wonders by little-known Italian ateliers.

"When I was called to see the objects, the house was already almost empty, but I could not help but realize the extraordinary collection of clothes and accessories kept in the cabinets.
This collection is now in our hands with all the respect, enthusiasm, wonder and desire that the whole may not be lost, nor the collection forgotten.
So many clothes of this quality create a history of personal life as well as collective, a glimpse of fashion history to tell. "

Beatrice Albrici