What is Carlo Cracco doing next to Linda Evangelista? And Gualtiero Marchesi alongside Charlotte Rampling?  In the collective imagination, little could be as distant as a chef and a model. Two antithetical worlds,  in opposition but… are they also incompatible? Not if the observation point is fame, notoriety, beauty. When food and its, now immortalised, creators are on the same plain as the image of a beautiful woman. With a keen and deep eye, and at the same time, with an irony that has always characterised him, Bob Krieger proposes his latest work: iCONS. Alongside familiar faces of timeless beauty from fashion and world cinema, which his lens captures with an unmistakable style, Krieger presents the new stars of Made in Italy, the “ambassadors of taste”, of an exquisitely Italian capacity to express the excellence of our food. iCONS is a fun, irreverent and, at the same time, current way of portraying authentic icons of style and passion.

“This show,” says Ferruccio De Bortoli in the preface of the volume iCONS (Electa), “brings together the  Krieger’s photographs of the fashion of the moment, cooking, with the fashion we are familiar with, and of which he is the high priest with a camera instead of scissors. The chefs and the models. A bold approach because the latter, in order to stay on catwalk, have to keep away from the kitchen. But it has within it, a socially useful message, and can be safely described as a small manifesto against anorexia… And in the work of the chefs – who not only satisfy our tastes but with maniacal precision oversee the aesthetics of their dishes – there is an artistic inclination that brings them closer to designers. Bob Krieger’s photographic wit captures the curious expressions of Cracco, Oldani and his colleagues, and offers us again the timeless charm of the most acclaimed models. Krieger has stopped time, with a click. The subjects portrayed give themselves up to him with a surprising abandon. But great photographers also have a hypnotic power.”

The exhibition will be presented, during a special evening,  on 15 November by the chairman of Mondadori Retail, Mario Resca, the inspiration behind “St-Art. Artist of the month. Today’s and tomorrow’s masters on show”, a cultural project designed and promoted by Mondadori Megastore in collaboration with Milo Goj’s Art Relation.  For over a year, at the Mondadori Megastore in Piazza Duomo 1 and Via Marghera 28, important young talent have alternated with established artists, on collections that aim to draw the public in to contemporary art and, thanks also to accessible prices, enable the general public to begin collecting.

Mondadori Store is once again the “Retalier of the Year Italy 2016-2017” in the “bookstore” category, the leading Italian award based on consumer assessment which, for the third consecutive year, rewards the buying experience offered by Italy’s most extensive chain of bookstores.

Mondadori Store obtained the highest score among the eligible candidates  in the “bookstore” category. Nine main aspects in the buying process were judged by customers who in recent months were asked to express their evaluations: the price/quality ration, price levels, special and promotional offers; service, training and courtesy of staff, assortment, atmosphere and innovation.

With 600 sales outlets across the country, and three different shop formats – Megastore, Bookstore and Point – every year Mondadori Store serves more than 20 million customers, that in addition to books and a variety of other products, offers service from qualified staff and experience in entertainment. This award is an encouragement to Mondadori Retail to continue to offer its clientele an environment that is increasingly stimulating and surprising.

Retailer of the Year is an international award, first launched in 2003 under the name Beste Winkelketen in the Netherlands and  subsequently expanded as Retailer of the Year to Belgium, Germany, France, Spain, Switzerland, Austria, Luxembourg and, from this year, also Russia.

It has been present in Italy for 9 years, 3 of which with the name “Insegna dell’Anno Italia” (www.insegnadellanno.it). Insegna dell’Anno Italia is an initiative by Q&A Research & Consultancy, organised by SEIC – Studio Orlandini.