Fortuny y Madrazo: An Artistic Legacy  Queen Sofía Spanish
Institute  Through March 30  New York  Fortuny—one of the few
remaining last words in luxury. The name conjures Venetian
palazzos, caskets of gold and heiresses on grand tours, not to
mention the fin de siècle aesthetes Gabriele D'Annunzio, Marcel
Proust and Paul Poiret, all of whom were inspired by the brand
and its rich intonations. Fortuny is a fashion and a fabric.
Begun as a dress house, and operating as Fortuny Fabrics since
1921, the company has sustained its Old World standard in a
millennial market, and it has done so without succumbing to the
bridge line or the price point, which makes it all the more
desirable.  A Peplos gown by Fortuny y Madrazo. Museo del Traje,
Madrid  Fortuny is not just the name of a company. It is also
the name of a man, and he was not, as everyone assumes, Italian.
Mariano Fortuny y Madrazo (1871-1949) was Spanish. It's an easy
enough mistake to make. Fortuny was born in Granada but raised
in Paris. As an adult he mo