Art Leaves the Canvas: Lulu Presents "Dialogue Between Canvas and Textile"

* An exhibition and fashion show in Cefalù demonstrate how painting can be "dressed"

The artist and designer Lilyana Petrova – Lulu and her fashion brand BYLLU will present to an international audience in Cefalù, Sicily, the artistic project "Dialogue Between Canvas and Textile" – a unique exhibition where the canvas comes to life, and fashion speaks with the power of art. The event will open on July 11, 2025, at 19:00 at the Octagono Santa Caterina Gallery, located at the famous Piazza Duomo in Cefalù. The exhibition will run until July 27, 2025.

As part of the project, 21 paintings created by Lilyana Petrova – Lulu will be presented, along with a boutique collection of artistic clothing modeled after the paintings themselves. In their emotionally charged and symbolic forms, the viewer can recognize themes such as humanity and the cosmos, pain and love, dreams and reality. In a unique way, each of these paintings serves as inspiration for an artistic silhouette – a piece of clothing from the BYLLU collection, modeled after the specific painting. Thus, a "dialogue" arises – between stillness and movement, between flatness and volume, between imagination and the senses. This is a contemporary artistic experience that unites art and fashion not as decorative additions, but as equal forms of spiritual expression. The collection is conceived as wearable art – clothes that are worn not only on the body but also on the soul, as the exhibition's slogan says: "Outside the frame, inside the soul."

The project highlights the need for contemporary art that not only decorates but challenges – with images, meanings, and personal truths. At its core is the theme of inner freedom and transformation – of matter into idea, color into feeling, and clothing into confession.

Prof. Dr. Lyubomir Stoykov – cultural expert and president of the Fashion Academy, emphasizes: "Lulu is a subtle and sensual creator who easily transfers the beautiful ideas and motifs from her paintings into the artistic design of the clothes she creates. The messages her works send are filled with bold sensuality and, at the same time, with melancholy, tenderness, and determination."

The event is organized by the Municipality of Cefalù and cultural partners from the city. The artist Mario Taviano will also participate, adding to the experience with an artistic interpretation. The exhibition "Dialogue Between Canvas and Textile" is an invitation to the senses and imagination – an experience that breaks the boundaries between art and fashion and gives form to emotions. Its thematic motto is: "Outside the frame, inside the soul."

Photos:

1. Designer Lilyana Petrova – Lulu.

2. – 3. Outfit and painting by designer Lilyana Petrova – Lulu.

4. – 7. Outfit by the fashion brand BYLLU with designer Lilyana Petrova – Lulu.
Photo: Kostadin Krustev – Koko