Stella Novarino (born 1979) is an Italian fashion designer of partial Haitian origin. Her label, Stella Jean (), utilizes her mother's maiden name.

Background

Novarino studied political science at

Sapienza University of Rome The Sapienza University of Rome (), formally the Università degli Studi di Roma "La Sapienza", abbreviated simply as Sapienza ('Wisdom'), is a Public university, public research university located in Rome, Italy. It was founded in 1303 and is ...

, before dropping out. Novarino dropped out of school and modeled for

Egon von Fürstenberg Egon is a Danish variant of the male given name Egino. It is most commonly found in Central Europe, Central and Northern Europe, Northern Europe. Egon may refer to: People * Egon VIII of Fürstenberg-Heiligenberg (1588–1635), Imperial Count of ...

. She decided she wanted to try designing while modeling. She is self taught. Her label uses her mother's maiden name Jean, instead of her birth surname Novarino, to reflect her creole heritage. She has collaborated with artisans from developing counties including

Peru Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...

Haiti Haiti, officially the Republic of Haiti, is a country on the island of Hispaniola in the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and south of the Bahamas. It occupies the western three-eighths of the island, which it shares with the Dominican ...

Burkina Faso Burkina Faso is a landlocked country in West Africa, bordered by Mali to the northwest, Niger to the northeast, Benin to the southeast, Togo and Ghana to the south, and Ivory Coast to the southwest. It covers an area of 274,223 km2 (105,87 ...

Benin Benin, officially the Republic of Benin, is a country in West Africa. It was formerly known as Dahomey. It is bordered by Togo to the west, Nigeria to the east, Burkina Faso to the north-west, and Niger to the north-east. The majority of its po ...

Mali Mali, officially the Republic of Mali, is a landlocked country in West Africa. It is the List of African countries by area, eighth-largest country in Africa, with an area of over . The country is bordered to the north by Algeria, to the east b ...

, and

Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...

in producing her collections. In 2011, Novarino won second place in a ''

Vogue Italia ''Vogue Italia'' is the Italian edition of '' Vogue'' magazine owned by Condé Nast International. In publication since 1964, it has been called the top fashion magazine in the world. The publication is currently edited by Francesca Ragazzi and ...

'' emerging designers contest. In 2013, she was part of a at

Armani Giorgio Armani S.p.A. (), commonly known as Armani, is an Italian luxury fashion house founded in Milan by Giorgio Armani which designs, manufactures, distributes and retails haute couture, ready-to-wear, leather goods, shoes, accessories, and ...

/Teatro space showcasing emerging designers during Milan Fashion Week SS14 which included a collaboration with the

International Trade Centre The International Trade Centre (ITC) () is a multilateral agency which has a joint mandate with the World Trade Organization (WTO) and the United Nations (UN) through the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD). The headqua ...

's Ethical Fashion Initiative to create sustainable printed fabrics. For a month in 2014,

Victoria and Albert Museum The Victoria and Albert Museum (abbreviated V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.8 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and named after Queen ...

in London exhibited one of her outfits while highlighting diverse designers.

Activism

As of 2020, Novariono was the only Afro-European member of the

Camera Nazionale della Moda Italiana Camera Nazionale della Moda Italiana (often translated to ''National Chamber for Italian Fashion'' or ''Italian Fashion Council'' in English) is a non-profit organization, whose purpose is the promotion, coordination of the Italian fashion ind ...

. Stella Novarino took the stage at a BLM protest in June 2020 against racial discrimination in Italy and has later claimed to be the first and only Italian fashion designer to do so. In 2021, Novarino co-founded the We Are Made in Italy (WAMI) initiative with Edward Buchanan and Michelle Francine Ngonmo to showcase BIPOC designers with the support of Camera della Moda, including a Milan Fashion Week opening. Despite WAMI's efforts, Camera della Moda eventually chose not to host a board it advocated for after Novarino publicly posted criticism of other Italian fashion brands. Carlo Capasa, president of Camera della Moda, stated that it "could not host any board that appeared to take public swipes at other members." In 2023, Novarino announced that she would withdraw from Milan Fashion Week and begin a

hunger strike A hunger strike is a method of non-violent resistance where participants fasting, fast as an act of political protest, usually with the objective of achieving a specific goal, such as a policy change. Hunger strikers that do not take fluids are ...

due to the lack of diversity and inclusion of designers of color.

Personal life

Novarino was born and raised in

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

with a Haitian mother, Violette Jean, and an Italian father, Marcello Novarino. She is a mother of two, and resides in Rome with her children.

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jean, Stella 1979 births Living people Fashion designers from Rome Italian fashion designers Italian women fashion designers Italian women company founders Italian people of Haitian descent Sapienza University of Rome alumni