Italy, Nigeria can strengthen ties through fashion, art – Ambassador

By Maureen Okon

Mr Stephano De Leo, the Ambassador of Italy to Nigeria, has said that Italy and Nigeria are capable of strengthening the already existing cooperation between both countries through fashion and art.

De Leo disclosed this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja.

The ambassador said that Italy had been a colossus in the fashion world for centuries and that cooperation between the two countries in fashion and art would provide them with the impetus to be global giants in the industry.

According to him, Italy is a superpower in the fashion world today because it is a major player playing a dominant role in the industry.

“I must say that we can learn from the talents here in Nigeria. Nigeria can also learn from Italy.

“We are known for the beauties of centuries past.

“When you go to Rome, you will see the Baroque and see the paintings of the middle-ages. But, if you look at modern art, modern art is here in Nigeria.

“So, we have to put together the talent of the people that we have in Nigeria, and with the experience and the knowledge within Italy.

“I will be very happy if we can find ways to put art and fashion from Italy and Nigeria together to create opportunities for young people and artists to meet in Italy or Nigeria during fashion shows and deliberate on fabric, colours and other issues that we can find in Nigeria.

“In some ways, this can influence Italy and vice versa,’’ he said.

“Clearly, this is one way in which Italy and Nigeria can have a lot of things in common. We need to work together,” he added.

(NAN)