Artteca Brings Wearable Art to the Fashion World

Have you ever seen a work of art and thought it so beautiful you wish you could wear it? Thanks to sisters Claudia and Flavia Giardinella’s new fashion line, Artteca, now you can.

Many clothes people wear are beautiful — almost artistic pieces on their own. However, it's rare that you get to wear an actual piece of art. The local clothing company does just that in the form of scarves, tops, and other wearable gear.  

Flavia studied art in college, and upon graduation, she wanted to do something other than work at a gallery. She wanted to work directly with artists. In 2015, she brought onboard her sister Claudia, and together they created Artteca.

Although they manufacture the clothes in Los Angeles, where Flavia lives, New Times got to hang out in the Miami office with Claudia, who is stationed locally. “The point of Artteca is to bring the feeling of buying art to the fashion industry. Everything we make is exclusive and comes in a limited quantity just like an art print. It’s wearable art!” she says.

To find artists they want to work with, they scour museum fairs and art galleries. They look for artists with a cool aesthetic who are relatively new yet are established enough to be represented by art galleries. Then they form a consultant group comprising gallery owners and authorities within the art world to choose those whom they want.
The process feels very much like that of commissioning an art piece, with few artists making the cut. “When we finalize the list, we then make a print from the original work and turn it into clothing,” Claudia explains.

The sisters are of Venezuelan descent, and Claudia says it’s very important to them to acknowledge their Hispanic roots through the artists they work with while still exposing their clients to a wide variety of works. Currently, they are working with 11 artists who are an equal mix of American and Hispanic. Among them are famed Cuban artist Rubén Torres Llorca, Mexico's Gonzalo Fuenmayor, and Augustus Francis, son of the renowned Sam Francis.

They don’t just work with canvas art; they create sculptures and other pieces too, making what they offer intricate in many ways. Each wearable art piece comes with a certificate of authenticity. For example, if an artwork is made into a scarf, it won’t be replicated in any other garment.

Claudia says that in the future, she and Flavia hope to continue expanding and work with more artists and maybe even open a storefront boutique. Pieces range from $160 to $290 and can be purchased at artteca.com.