Elsa Romio de Serrano (13 July 1941-16 September 2020), commonly known as Elsa Serrano, was an Italian-born Argentine fashion designer.

Biography

Serrano was born as Elsa Romio in

Corigliano Calabro Corigliano Calabro is a town and a ''frazione'' of Corigliano-Rossano located in the province of Cosenza, c. 40 km northeast of the city of Cosenza, in Calabria, southern Italy. Geography It is situated near the mouth of a river of the same ...

, province of Cosenza, Calabria,

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

on 13 July 1941, the daughter of Checchina Malavolta and Espedito Romio. At the age of fourteen, Romio arrived in Argentina on 7 December 1955 with her parents and nine siblings. Self-taught, Serrano did not carry out formal design studies; she started in fashion with a boutique that offered imported garments in the Belgrano neighborhood. In 1968, she began to design using her own style; for several years she designed four collections per season, haute couture and ready-to-wear. She later devoted herself exclusively to haute couture. In 1977, she organized the first show in her collection. In forty-five years of experience, Serrano's designs were used by several well-known people, highlighting the wedding dress of Claudia Villafañe who was the wife of

Diego Maradona Diego Armando Maradona (; 30 October 196025 November 2020) was an Argentine professional football player and manager. Widely regarded as one of the greatest players in the history of the sport, he was one of the two joint winners of the F ...

. She also dressed important figures of Argentine cinema, such as Mirtha Legrand, Susana Giménez and

Norma Aleandro Norma Aleandro (born 2 May 1936) is an Argentine actress. She is considered one of the most celebrated and prolific Argentine actresses of all time and is recognized as a cultural icon in her home country. Aleandro starred in the 1985 film '' T ...

, and foreigners such as Sophia Loren,

Joan Collins Dame Joan Henrietta Collins (born 23 May 1933) is an English actress, author and columnist. Collins is the recipient of several accolades, including a Golden Globe Award, a People's Choice Award, two Soap Opera Digest Awards and a Primeti ...

Gina Lollobrigida Luigia "Gina" Lollobrigida (born 4 July 1927) is an Italian actress, photojournalist, and politician. She was one of the highest-profile European actresses of the 1950s and early 1960s, a period in which she was an international sex symbol. As o ...

Catherine Deneuve Catherine Fabienne Dorléac (born 22 October 1943), known professionally as Catherine Deneuve (, , ), is a French actress as well as an occasional singer, model, and producer, considered one of the greatest European actresses. She gained recogni ...

and dancer

Maya Plisetskaya Maya Mikhailovna Plisetskaya (russian: link=no, Майя Михайловна Плисецкая; 20 November 1925 – 2 May 2015) was a Soviet and Russian ballet dancer, choreographer, ballet director, and actress. In post-Soviet times, she he ...

. Serrano had also dressed figures of Argentine politics, such as Zulemita, the daughter of former Argentine president

Carlos Menem Carlos Saúl Menem (2 July 1930 – 14 February 2021) was an Argentine lawyer and politician who served as the President of Argentina from 1989 to 1999. Ideologically, he identified as a Peronist and supported economically liberal policies. H ...

with whom she traveled in the tours abroad accompanying her father when he was president, and

María Lorenza Barreneche María Lorenza Barreneche Iriarte (July 3, 1926 – January 5, 2016) was an Argentine public figure and wife of the late President Raúl Alfonsín. She held the position of First Lady of Argentina from 1983 until 1989. Barreneche was born in 1 ...

, the wife of former Argentine president

Raúl Alfonsín Raúl Ricardo Alfonsín (12 March 1927 – 31 March 2009) was an Argentine lawyer and statesman who served as President of Argentina from 10 December 1983 to 8 July 1989. He was the first democratically elected president after more than ...

. Serrano had a period of economic difficulties in 2001, coinciding with the

December 2001 riots in Argentina The December 2001 crisis, sometimes known as the Argentinazo (), was a period of civil unrest and rioting in Argentina, which took place during December 2001, with the most violent incidents taking place on 19 and 20 December in the capital, Bu ...

, which forced her to close the doors of her company and finish off a home she owned located on Calle Mansilla, in Barrio Norte, but managed to recover. In 2020, she made her last television appearance as a jury in the program Corte y confección hosted by

Andrea Politti Andrea Politti is an Argentine actress and TV host. Awards * 44th Martín Fierro Awards, 2013 Martín Fierro Awards ** Best female TV host References

Argentine actresses Living people Year of birth missing (living people) Place of birt ...

Awards

Serrano has won several times the Silver Scissors award given by the Argentine Chamber of Fashion. In 2014, she received special recognition for her career in local fashion.

Death

Serrano died on 16 September 2020 at the age of seventy-nine due to a fire generated in her home located on the third floor of Calle 986 Maipú in the Retiro neighborhood of

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...

. The autopsy determined that the cause of her death was asphyxia due to smoke inhalation and the investigations of the fire department expert team determined that the accident was caused by an electrical short circuit.

Personal life

Serrano was married twice and from her second marriage, she adopted the surname Serrano for her professional life. She was survived by three daughters, Roxana, María Soledad and María Belén and six grandchildren.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Serrano, Elsa 1941 births 2020 deaths People from Corigliano Calabro Argentine fashion designers Argentine women fashion designers Argentine people of Calabrian descent Italian emigrants to Argentina Deaths from asphyxiation Deaths from fire Deaths by smoke inhalation Accidental deaths in Argentina