Who He is: Filippo Sorcinelli is a multifaceted Italian artist whose work and persona intertwine spirituality, sensuality, and personal authenticity. Most known for his sacred vestments and fragrances, he embodies a blend of tradition and modernity, challenging conventions within both the art and religious communities. With so much talent, there is no desire to reduce who he is to a single sentence, but by the end of this article, you should understand why Filippo is the trusted designer known as the official designer of The Pope.
What He Does: Sorcinelli’s designs are characterized by geometric precision and symbolic depth, aiming to enhance the spiritual experience through visual harmony. In 2001, Sorcinelli founded LAVS “L’Atelier Vesti Sacre”, a high-end workshop dedicated to creating liturgical garments and accessories for the Catholic Church. His atelier has produced the wardrobe for both Pope Benedict XVI and Pope Francis, including the attire for the inaugural Mass of Pope Francis in 2013. Notably he designed the hat worn by Pope Benedict XVI during his funeral.
Fun Fact: In 2013, Sorcinelli co-founded UNUM, a niche perfume house that draws inspiration from sacred and artistic themes. The collection includes fragrances like “LAVS,” which evokes the incense of sacred spaces, and “Epicentro,” created in response to the 2016 earthquake in the Marche and Umbria regions, with proceeds supporting reconstruction efforts. The most unique fact about him is that by the age of 13, he was already playing the organ in the cathedrals of Fano, Rimini, and San Benedetto del Tronto. His passion for sacred music led him to study at the Pontifical Institute of Sacred Music, and he later took part in some of Italy’s most esteemed music festivals.
Artistic Vision and Identity
Sorcinelli views his art as a means of inhabiting the world with radical attentiveness, where even the smallest details can reveal profound meaning. He describes himself as someone who lives with an open wound that becomes language, indicating a deep sensitivity and emotional engagement with his work. His creations often draw from Gothic aesthetics, reflecting a personal style that emerged from solitude and uncertainty. This approach is not merely aesthetic but deeply personal, stemming from his own fears and experiences.
His work becomes a bridge, not only between tradition and modernity, but between the visible, the felt and the sensed. In this space between beauty and brokenness, Sorcinelli crafts a visual and also for his fragrances an olfactory theology, one that invites contemplation, discomfort, and awe.
Heritage
Filippo Sorcinelli, originally from Mondolfo in Italy’s Marche region, was raised in a family deeply immersed in the textile arts, a heritage that profoundly shaped his creative path. Surrounded by skilled weavers and seamstresses, including his mother, aunts, and sister, he grew up in the atmosphere of a small family atelier, where the textures, scents, and rituals of daily life left an enduring mark on his artistic sensibilities. Memories like the incense from his days as an altar boy or the smell of fresh wood in his father’s workshop continue to resonate in his work, especially in his fragrances. In his early twenties, with the support of his aunt and sister, he designed his first sacred vestment for a friend’s ordination, an experience that led to the founding of The Atelier LAVS in 2001, dedicated to liturgical garments. His family remains closely involved, with their craftsmanship still at the heart of his atelier found in Santarcangelo di Romagna. A tribute to this bond is even found in one of his perfumes: Aspetta! La crema è ancora calda, meaning “Wait! The cream is still warm.” inspired by his mother’s Sunday ritual of preparing lemon cream. Sorcinelli’s close-knit family has played an essential role in shaping both his vision and success, however much so, the details of his private life do remain discreet.
Personal Style
With a shaved head, a dense black beard, and his signature minimalist black attire, he cuts a striking and deliberate figure. There’s a monastic severity to his look, yet it carries the quiet drama of a performance, measured, intentional, and deeply symbolic. His appearance is not a costume but an extension of his artistic ethos, stark, contemplative, and unapologetically himself. It visually embodies his persona and the themes that permeate his work: restraint, intensity, and the quiet power of presence.
Controversiality
He acknowledges the tension that exists within religious structures, as well as the difficulty of being fully seen or understood within them. Yet, instead of retreating, he leans into that tension with the grace of Queerness and Faith. His commitment is not to conformity, but to authenticity, a kind of freedom that, as he describes it, lies not in doing whatever one wants, but in doing what one must. As a homosexual man within the Catholic tradition, Sorcinelli navigates the complexities of his identity with openness and introspection, finding beauty and spiritual depth in the reconciliation of his queerness and his Catholicism. He remains aware of the challenges in being understood, yet stays rooted in a life shaped by dignity, courage, and an unwavering sense of purpose. In this way, his life becomes a kind of liturgy: a creative act of bridging what is often seen as irreconcilable.
Most Known For
Designing Liturgical Garments for the Vatican. Dressing the Pope. Period.
Filippo Sorcinelli has cultivated a close professional relationship with the Vatican, designing sacred vestments for both Pope Benedict XVI and Pope Francis through his atelier, Atelier LAVS. Since 2007, he created over fifty pieces for Benedict XVI, including the intricately detailed white mitre with gold trim worn during the pope’s lying in state—a deeply symbolic garment. In 2013, Sorcinelli designed the simple yet profound vestment worn by Pope Francis at his inaugural Mass, capturing the pope’s humility and preference for understated elegance. Working in collaboration with the Office for the Liturgical Celebrations of the Supreme Pontiff, Sorcinelli ensures his designs honor liturgical tradition while reflecting each pope’s unique style. His philosophy treats these garments as sacred art, incorporating beauty, symbolism, and multi-sensory elements to engage the faithful visually and spiritually.
Creating Artistic and Conceptual Fragrances
Through his fragrance line UNUM, Sorcinelli produces deeply personal, avant-garde perfumes inspired by spirituality, memory, and art. Each scent is crafted to tell a story, combining creative expression with olfactory artistry in a way that challenges conventional perfumery and invites reflection. The most iconic is LAVS, and stands for Laboratorio Atelier Vesti Sacre, the name of Sorcinelli’s liturgical atelier, this fragrance from the UNUM collection, renowned for capturing the authentic scent of church incense, blending frankincense, myrrh, and other resins to evoke the solemn, sacred atmosphere of liturgical rituals.
Blending Spirituality with Avant-Garde Aesthetics
Sorcinelli is known for seamlessly merging sacred tradition with contemporary, sensual design. His work explores the interplay between faith, identity, and beauty, pushing boundaries within both religious and artistic communities and inviting a fresh dialogue between the two.
Least Known For
His Early Life as a Cathedral Organist and Musician
Before becoming a designer, Sorcinelli was a gifted organist from the age of 13, foundations that continue to inform his rhythmic and harmonious approach to design. Studying at the Pontifical Institute of Sacred Music and performing in cathedrals to this day.
His Family’s Integral Role in His Workshop
Sorcinelli’s atelier remains deeply rooted in his family’s textile tradition, with his mother, aunts, and sister actively involved in the craftsmanship, maintaining a rare, intimate connection between heritage, family and innovation.
His Exploration of Experimental Art Forms Beyond Fashion and Fragrance
Through projects like Extrait de Musique and Nebbia, Sorcinelli delves into sound design, visual art, and multimedia, showcasing a multidisciplinary creativity that extends far beyond his more visible fashion and scent work.
Author Nadia kucukyildiz
I am passionate about fashion since a very young age. I love to design clothes and write about trends, today I work as a fashion assistant and I am based in Finland, where I have a Luxury vintage consignment store.