PatternVault

Born in Rome, Alberta Tiburzi began her modelling career in Italy in the 1960s. She later moved to New York after signing a contract with American Vogue. In the 1970s Tiburzi became a professional fashion photographer, known as signora della luce for her work with light. (Read a bio here, from the 2005 exhibition Italian Eyes: Italian Fashion Photographs from 1951 to Today.)

In the mid-1960s Tiburzi did some modelling for Vogue Patterns in Rome, for Couturier patterns by Italian designers. My mother made this Galitzine ensemble in fuchsia bouclé:

In this design by Federico Forquet, the shaped hem of the cutaway jacket matches the waistline seam on the dress:

Tiburzi brings out the drama of this double-breasted tent coat by Fabiani:

Tiburzi was also photographed in the dress from the same pattern:

Here she models a red Simonetta dress with tucks radiating from the collar:

Once in New York, Tiburzi did some work for McCall’s. Here she models a purple dress with heavily embellished collar by Pauline Trigère:

You can see a Hiro editorial featuring Tiburzi at Couture Allure, or click the models tag to see more posts in my models series.