Bonaveri Magazine

London-born, Kevin Arpino is a milestone - and
also a maverick - in the display and mannequins
industry and art, having worked for 31 years at
Rootstein, next to the founder Adel Rootstein,
the pioneer of realistic mannequins who broke
into the world and market in the ‘60s with her
eponymous company based in the UK.
Dubbed the “Mercedes Benz of mannequins”,
Arpino was the Creative Director at Rootstein
Display Mannequins in London curating the
design of mannequins and also the image of the
brand, conceiving some of its most successful
and ground-breaking collections, faces and
bodies.
We spoke with Kevin over the phone, catching
him between a London - California flight, where he was
heading to work as a Creative Director and dealer for a
London art gallery. At present, with all his experience
between fashion and visual arts, he oversees art fairs
like Art Basel in Miami and Untitled Art Fair in San
Francisco.
Let’s start from the beginning: London, Rootstein and
you.
I started in the ‘80s, but the history of the company
dates back to the ‘50s. Adel Rootstein established
the company in the late 50s making wigs and props
in a small apartment in Earl’s Court. At that time she
came to a realization that all the mannequins in the
stores looked the same. So, she began creating handmade
mannequins that looked younger and more
glamorous and stylish - not shapeless husks that
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