Accademia Costume e Moda

The Accademia Costume e Moda has a long-established tradition in fashion education and training since it was founded in 1964 in Rome by Rosana Pistolese, a costume and fashion historian, as well as a costume designer for theater, television and film, and a writer and publicist on fashion and costume. Renowned illustrator René Gruau designed for her the academy’s logo.

Thanks to the talent and passion of its founder, and the the particular type of studies which blend theory and practice, the academy has qualified over the years as a pole of excellence, and is now among the 3 best fashion schools in the world for its three-year and master’s courses in Fashion Design according to the “The Best Fashion Schools in the World 2019” report by Business of Fashion (BoF). It is currently the only Italian fashion school to have won 3 editions of the prestigious LVMH Graduate Prize, during the 2016, 2018 and 2019 editions.

Three-year courses provide a Level I academic diploma and are aimed at students interested in Fashion Design, Accessories and Costume Design, Fashion Communication and Fashion Styling, Fashion Management or Media Design and Multimedia Arts. The educational offerings also include Level I Masters; Level II Academic Diplomas (Costume and Haute Couture Design; Accessory and Jewelry Design), i.e. two-year courses developed to offer specialization following a three-year course of study; three-year Specialization Courses (Fashion Design; Fashion Marketing & Advertising; Bijou and Jewelry; 3D Patternmaking; Prototyping Bags and Shoes), for quick and targeted training in specific areas; and introductory summer courses.

Accademia Costume e Moda has its headquarters in the historic center of Rome, opposite Castel Sant’Angelo and a short walk from Piazza Navona. Inside the facility, there is a historic Library-Emeroteca-Archive (BEA) open to the public and frequented by scholars of costume, fashion, textiles and jewelry, with more than 4,500 monographic volumes and 12,000 magazine issues. Conferences, talks and presentations with guests of national and international importance are hosted in the academy’s Aula Magna.