Prints Charming

To the uninitiated eye, the exuberant and technically brilliant prints that walked down spring runways at Dries Van Noten, Prada and Dolce & Gabbana might evoke a trip to the lush gardens of Giverny or Tahiti. Or they could appear to be the result of a completely different kind of psychedelic trip. But to those in the know—designers, fabric-mill owners and trend spotters—the plethora of prints this season summons something much closer to home: Ratti, the fabric and printmaking house based in Como, Italy.

Founded in 1945 by Antonio Ratti, the printmaker and silk weaver has become the go-to source for luxury houses and avant-garde designers in search of something unique and extraordinary. "They're ready and open to all new experimentation," says Miuccia Prada, who works constantly with Ratti to develop her prints—anything from the hand-drawn Art Nouveau organdy prints for spring to the postcard-inspired kitschy prints of several seasons ago. "Ratti stands out for its constant work of research and archives," says Fulvia Visconti, vice president of Salvatore Ferragamo. Ralph Lauren stresses the importance of Ratti's design studio and technical expertise. Even American retailer J. Crew has delved into Ratti's extensive archives of more than 300,000 fabric samples for inspiration for its limited-edition collection. "Their incredibly vibrant colors work so well for us," says J. Crew's creative director Jenna Lyons.

Indeed, ever since Antonio Ratti borrowed $5 from his father to open his eponymous company, Ratti has been printing everything from silk pocket squares to couture fabrics for a long roster of creative talent. The postwar years were a new era for Italian textiles—a renaissance of color and patterns after so much gray and black—and Ratti said his aim was to build a company that was both commercial and creative. Designing and printing ties at first, Ratti added scarves, pocket squares and ascot ties, quickly developing a reputation for and love of paisleys—one of the most complicated patterns to produce. With the completion of Ratti's own factory in 1958, the company was among the first to consolidate all the steps of silkmaking under a single roof. Some of Ratti's original paisley designs still hang framed there. Over time, Ratti became one of the largest silk manufacturers in Italy, and in the '70s and '80s the biggest names in fashion—Valentino, Chanel, Yves Saint Laurent—came calling.

Known to his staff as Signor Ratti or Cavaliere until he passed away in 2002 at age 86, Ratti was considered a major figure in the Made in Italy story. Visconti, who collaborated with him on ties and scarves, remembers him as a "man of great values with a strong passion for his work." Labeled a legend for his dedication and foresight, Ratti was a gentleman who cared deeply about his employees. When the printing factory was built, he insisted on installing huge windows, giving his workers a breathtaking view of the Alps.

Although the company continued to flourish in the 1980s, supplying flashy prints to designers like Gianni Versace, the minimalist '90s were another story. By 1989 the Ratti business had gone public, but despite Signor Ratti's attempt to branch out—adding jerseys, silk blends and facilities specializing in yarn-dyed silks—it was tough for a company famous for ebullient prints to thrive in a decade devoted to dour black.

Nowadays his daughter Donatella (Doni) Ratti, who became Ratti's president in 1996 and CEO in 2001, has to cope with different problems: namely, casual Friday morphing into every day (i.e., the banishment of the tie, which represents 25% of Ratti's earnings), the weak dollar and, most important, China. "It's become very difficult," says Donatella, 50. "People don't want to pay our prices. They compare them to China's." Such a comparison irks her, since China lacks Ratti's quality, quickness and creativity and isn't interested in small quantities.

Sitting under a vast photograph of her father's hand—"My father was always very careful about how he touched silk"—Ratti is ensconced in her office in the new headquarters, built in 1999. Like her father, Ratti is a sharp businessperson with a passion for the creative process. She pays frequent visits to clients like John Galliano at Dior and listens to their ideas and vision to glean ideas of her own. "You listen a lot, but you also propose a lot," she says. Depending on the designer Ratti is dealing with, it can go either way. Some, like Dries Van Noten, will be inspired by a flower he finds in the archives but will ask for it to be enlarged. Others, like Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana, want something that is completely new. This season Ratti suggested painting on muslin-like organza. The result: their brilliant collection of dresses inspired by artist Julian Schnabel's canvases. Then there is Miuccia Prada, who invests a tremendous amount of time and interest in fabric development. Describing the designer as innovative, Ratti remembers a series of checks being printed directly onto knitwear and geometric motifs onto T shirts and minidresses.

Inside the creative hub of Ratti, the modern, laboratory-like offices are divided into two sections. The research area is remarkable for its pile of fabrics, ranging from a new camouflage design on organic cotton to a tricked-up tweed for Chanel. Several women discuss the properties of swatches while others sit at their desks talking to clients.

The design team is quite different. In one room 15 young designers toil away at Macs. Their technical know-how stands in direct contrast to a woman who hand-paints jungle-like flowers for a Ferragamo scarf and a man nearby who loosely sketches polo players for Ralph Lauren. Nearby are the famous archives, stored in an enormous hangar. The archives are organized by style and designer, and walking through the aisles is a heady experience of color fantasy and craftsmanship, a sort of fashion-world memory lane.

Over in the printing factory, most of Ratti's fabrics are printed by the silkscreen method, which employs a template system. The more colors a print has, the more screens are needed (a Louis Vuitton scarf covered in tiny flowers requires 24). There is now also the more compact and modern inject-printing system, in which the image is printed directly from the computer. "It's less expensive for a few meters, but more expensive when printing a serious amount," says Vincenzo Cucinella, who manages production.

In the weeks leading up to the fall and spring ready-to-wear shows, the factory works overtime trying to accommodate designers' last-minute ideas. "It gets crazy," says Cucinella. "It's always, 'I want this now,'" he says, imitating his designer customers. "But keeping clients satisfied is part of the Ratti service."

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