Bianca Gusmaroli

A founding member of the Association of Canadian Couturiers, Bianca Gusmaroli settled in Montreal after emigrating from Italy via Sweden in 1951. She took part in the Association’s first activities, presenting her creations in the fashion shows at Montreal’s Ritz-Carlton hotel in September 1954 and the Pierre Hotel in New York City in December of the same year. For the New York show, she worked with Luciana Roselli, a Canadian of Italian origin, and labelled her clothing Gusmaroli and Roselli. She subsequently went back to using Bianca Gusmaroli in the program of the Association’s 1956 spring-summer collection show.

Her designs were influenced by Italian traditions and she enjoyed using luxury fabrics.

In the late 1950s, she ran a shop at 1529 Sherbrooke Street West. She last participated in the Association’s fashion shows in 1959.