When I received this news, I felt even more proud to be from Como and to live in this amazing city whose beauty and potential I have always known.
And I wasn’t wrong, in fact Como has officially achieved Unesco Creative City status thanks to its unique expertise in textile processing and silk in particular.
A network involving 295 cities in 90 countries around the world investing in culture and creativity – crafts and folk art, design, cinema, gastronomy, literature, multimedia arts and music – to promote sustainable urban development.
In Italy, my city joins 12 other cities: Bologna and Pesaro for music; Fabriano, Carrara and Biella for crafts; Turin for design, Rome for cinema; Parma, Alba and Bergamo for gastronomy; Milan for literature; Modena for media arts.
Como is at the heart of the Italian Textile Valley, an area founded on the textile industry which comprises the provinces of Como and Lecco. The textile sector is one of the fullest expressions of the Culture of Making and the importance of Made in Italy products. The textile industry has deep-rooted traditions and is regarded as a huge patrimony of experience and technical and artistic skills passed down from generation to generation, continuing to improve over time.
This is thanks to the constant push for innovation, which is ensured by the support of excellent training centres and promoted by the commitment and creativity of the industry’s artisans and textile manufacturers. Seventy percent of European silk comes from the Como district, which is proudly home to 1,376 companies (1,424 in 2019) and 15,515 employees. According to ‘Unioncamere’ and ‘Symbola’ Foundation, which gather statistics on the value of the cultural sector, the district is the market leader in design and printing (related specifically to the fashion industry and home furnishings). Como Creative City shines the spotlight on craftsmanship and the Culture of Making, and puts strategies in place for a circular economy that will create opportunities for regeneration and inclusion.
Cheers to Como!
Cheers to Made in Italy!
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