Full disclosure: when his granddaughter Valentina and costume designer Andrea Sorrentino started the Piero Tosi fan club, I was the first member. Luchino Visconti’s quintessential film adaptation of the novel The Leopard by Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa with maestro Tosi’s exquisite costumes is part of what pivoted me from fashion design to costume. Years ago, when rounding a corner in Tirelli in Rome, I encountered Angelica’s white ruffled gown on a mannequin. Famously worn by Claudia Cardinale in the film, I immediately teared up thinking of the scene. When Netflix announced their reboot for the small screen, I was skeptical but curious. Why tinker with a masterpiece? But when I discovered Carlo Poggioli was designing the series, I became obsessed. Among his mentors, Poggioli counts both the legendary Ann Roth as well as Tosi. When asked what it was like to walk in Tosi’s footsteps, Poggioli chuckles. His first reaction was to decline. It took several days of deliberation and discussion with friends and colleagues before Poggioli realized he could bring something unique to a story that the current generation has not seen. He explained, “The beauty for Visconti and Piero was perfection.” For Poggioli, beauty would be rooted in realism.

For six decades Ann Roth has sustained a storied career in costume design, Like any great story, the hero has a drive and motivation the audience never sees. Following her CDGA win for Period Film and recent Best Costume Oscar for Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom…