{{Short description|Italian-Australian businessman and arts patron (1913-2000)}} {{Use dmy dates|date=March 2025}} {{Use Australian English|date=March 2025}} {{Infobox person | name = Claudio Alcorso | image = Claudio Alcorso at Moorilla, Hobart, c.1995.jpg | alt = | caption = Claudio Alcorso at Moorilla Estate, {{circa|1995}}. | birth_date = {{Birth date|df=yes|1913|10|5}} | birth_place = [[Rome]], [[Italy]] | death_date = {{Death date and age|df=yes|2000|8|28|1913|02|5}} | death_place = [[Hobart]], [[Tasmania]], [[Australia]] | occupation = Entrepreneur, businessman, textile manufacturer, winemaker | known_for = Founder of [[Sheridan (brand)|Sheridan]] and [[Moorilla Estate]] | spouse = <!-- Add spouse name if known --> | children = <!-- Add children if known --> | awards = <!-- Add any notable awards if applicable --> }}
'''Claudio Alcorso''' (5 October 1913 – 28 August 2000)<ref>[https://www.printsandprintmaking.gov.au/artists/591/ Centre for Australian Art]</ref> was an [[Italy|Italian]]-[[Australia]]n entrepreneur, businessman, textile manufacturer, and arts patron. He co-founded Silk & Textile Printers Pty Ltd and later founded [[Sheridan (brand)|Sheridan]], a home furnishings brand that became a leading name in Australian textiles. In 1958, Alcorso established the [[Moorilla Estate|Moorilla vineyard]].
Alcorso also made significant contributions to Australian arts and culture, serving as the Foundation Chair of the [[Australian Opera]], a board member of the [[Australian Ballet]], and a long-time member of the [[Australian Elizabethan Theatre Trust]] 's executive committee.{{sfn|Andrighetti|1999}} He was also a staunch advocate for [[workers' rights]], [[Nature conservation|environmental conservation]], and the performing arts.
His autobiography, ''The Wind You Say'' (1993), reflects on the triumphs and challenges of his public and private life.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article126985956 |title=Inspiring story of Italian immigrant |newspaper=[[The Canberra Times]] |volume=67 |issue=21,200 |location=Australian Capital Territory, Australia |date=1 May 1993 |accessdate=5 March 2025 |page=9 (SECTION 1) |via=National Library of Australia}}</ref>
== Early life == Claudio Alcorso was born in [[Rome]], [[Italy]], on 5 October 1913, the eldest son of Amilcare and Delia Coen. His younger brother, Orlando, was born in 1916. Alcorso studied [[economics]] at the [[University of Milan]], graduating in 1935. Holding a civil aviation pilot licence, he qualified as a fighter pilot later that year and undertook his national service in the [[Royal Italian Air Force]]. His brother, Orlando, did not complete high school but eventually became a navigator and later a pilot in the Italian Air Force.{{sfn|Gentilli|1989|pp=420–440}}
After his studies, Alcorso moved to [[England]], where he attended [[University of Oxford|Oxford University]]. With the outbreak of [[World War II]], as an Italian citizen in England, he was interned as an enemy alien and later deported to [[Australia]], where he was placed in a prison camp in [[New South Wales]].{{sfn|Andrighetti|1999}}{{sfn|Gentilli|1989|pp=420–440}}<ref name="UTAS">{{cite web |title=Claudio Alcorso |url=https://www.utas.edu.au/library/companion_to_tasmanian_history/A/Claudio%20Alcorso.htm |publisher=University of Tasmania |access-date=3 March 2025}}</ref> He became an Australian citizen in October 1947.<ref>{{cite news |date=4 December 1947 |title=Certificates of Naturalization |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article232792752 |accessdate=25 April 2026 |newspaper=Commonwealth of Australia Gazette |location=Australia |page=3545 |via=National Library of Australia |issue=233}}</ref>
== Business career ==
=== Silk & Textile Printers and Sheridan === [[File:Silk and Textiles Derwent Park 1954 (cropped).jpg|thumb|Factory at Derwent Park, {{circa|1954}}]] In 1939, Alcorso co-founded Silk & Textile Printers Pty Ltd in [[Sydney]], alongside Orlando Alcorso and Paul Sonnino. The company initially operated in [[Rushcutters Bay, New South Wales|Rushcutters Bay]], producing high-quality printed textiles.<ref name="ArtsTas">{{cite web |title=Colour and Movement: The Life of Claudio Alcorso |url=https://www.arts.tas.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0008/403694/Colour_and_Movement,_The_Life_of_Claudio_Alcorso_-_Stephanie_Cahlan_-Web.pdf |publisher=Arts Tasmania |access-date=3 March 2025}}</ref>
After [[World War II]], seeking expansion opportunities, Alcorso moved the business to [[Tasmania]] in 1947, encouraged by [[Robert Cosgrove]]'s offer of cheap [[hydroelectric power]]. The company established a factory in [[Derwent Park, Tasmania|Derwent Park]], [[Hobart]], which became a major textile manufacturing hub. It employed up to 1,400 workers and introduced progressive workplace policies, including worker representation in the boardroom, a 40-hour workweek, and a profit-sharing system.<ref name="UTAS" />
In 1967, Alcorso launched the ''Sheridan'' brand, which became a globally recognised name in luxury home textiles. He remained involved in the brand's design and innovation until 1970, when he sold the company to [[Dunlop Australia|Dunlop]].<ref>{{cite news |title=A bit close to home: When modernism entered the material world |url=https://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/a-bit-close-to-home-when-modernism-entered-the-material-world-20160223-gn10wf.html |work=The Sydney Morning Herald |date=23 February 2016 |access-date=3 March 2025}}</ref>
=== Wine industry === [[File:MONA vineyard 20171120-070.jpg|thumb|Moorilla Estate vineyard in 2017]] Following his departure from Sheridan, Alcorso turned his attention entirely to [[winemaking]]. The Moorilla vineyard at [[Berriedale, Tasmania|Berriedale]], north of Hobart, was planted in 1958, and by 1973 it had developed into the [[Moorilla Estate]], one of [[Tasmania]]'s first modern vineyards. His pioneering efforts helped lay the foundation for Tasmania's wine industry, which has since become world-renowned for its cool-climate wines.<ref>{{cite web |title=Moorilla Estate |url=https://www.moorilla.com.au/about/history/ |publisher=Moorilla Estate |access-date=3 March 2025}}</ref>
Alcorso led Moorilla Estate for more than thirty years, expanding its operations in 1993 with the acquisition of the St Matthias Vineyard near [[Launceston, Tasmania|Launceston]]. However, the winery soon faced financial difficulties. In 1995, the business was purchased by [[David Walsh (art collector)|David Walsh]], an Australian entrepreneur, gambler, and art collector, who later transformed the Berriedale location into what would become MONA (the [[Museum of Old and New Art]]).<ref name="MONA">{{cite web | title=Moorilla – LEGEND | website=LEGEND – Australian Wine Imports | url=https://legendaustralia.com/moorilla/ | access-date=2025-03-05}}</ref>
== Arts, advocacy, and legacy == Alcorso was actively involved in Australia's cultural and social landscape. He served as chairman of the [[Opera Australia|Australian Opera]] and contributed to public art initiatives and cultural events.{{sfn|Andrighetti|1999}}<ref>{{cite web |title=The Alcorso Story |url=https://thequarryhouseluxuryretreat.com/the_alcorso_story.html |publisher=The Quarry House Luxury Retreat |access-date=3 March 2025}}</ref> He also played a role in the development of the Tasmanian Centre for the Arts at [[Sullivans Cove]], and a social space at [[The Hedberg]], a [[University of Tasmania]] performing arts campus, is named in his honour.<ref>{{Cite book |title=Colour and Movement - the life of Claudio Alcorso |last=Cahalan |first=Stephenie |year=2019 |publisher=Forty South |isbn=9780648532828}}</ref>
Beyond the arts, Alcorso was an advocate for [[workers' rights]] and [[environmental protection|environmental conservation]]. He was a vocal opponent of the [[Franklin Dam]] project in Tasmania during the 1980s and promoted sustainable industry practices.{{sfn|Andrighetti|1999}}<ref>{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article228659712 |title=More than Just a River: the Franklin blockade |newspaper=[[Tharunka]] |volume=39 |issue=8 |location=New South Wales, Australia |date=7 July 1993 |accessdate=5 March 2025 |page=19 |via=National Library of Australia}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Loveday Lives: Claudio Alcorso |url=https://lovedaylives.com/lives/claudio-alcorso/ |publisher=Loveday Lives |access-date=3 March 2025}}</ref>
He was appointed a [[Order of Australia|Member of the Order of Australia]] in the [[1984 Queen's Birthday Honours (Australia)|1984 Queen's Birthday Honours]] for his "services to the arts, education and to ethnic welfare".<ref>{{Cite web |title=Mr Claudio Piperno ALCORSO |url=https://honours.pmc.gov.au/honours/awards/869715 |access-date=2026-04-24 |website=Australian Honours Search Facility}}</ref>
Alcorso died in Hobart on 28 August 2000.<ref>{{Citation |last=Cahalan |first=Stephenie |title=Claudio Alcorso (1913–2000) |work=Australian Dictionary of Biography |url=https://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/alcorso-claudio-35204 |access-date=2026-04-24 |place=Canberra |publisher=National Centre of Biography, Australian National University |language=en}}</ref>
== References == {{Reflist}}
== Further reading == * {{cite journal |last=Andrighetti |first=Jim | title=Books from Behind Barbed Wire | journal=Biblionews and Australian Notes & Queries | volume=24 | issue=4 | date=December 1999 | pages=v | issn=0157-3276 | publisher=Book Collectors' Society of Australia | location=Sydney, NSW | url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-2990350034 | access-date=19 March 2025 | via=Trove}} * {{Cite book |title=Colour and Movement - the life of Claudio Alcorso |last=Cahalan |first=Stephenie |year=2019 |publisher=Forty South |isbn=9780648532828}} * {{Cite web |title=Papers Received: Claudio Alcorso: an Adventurer's Life |url=https://www.iai.com.au/Papers%20Recieved.pdf |last=Talia |first=Joseph |access-date=2025-03-05 |website=Italian Australian Institute |publisher=[[La Trobe University]] |page=703}} * {{Cite web |title=Claudio Alcorso and Post-War Textile Culture in Australia |url=https://opus.lib.uts.edu.au/bitstream/10453/142333/5/02whole.pdf |last=Sernack-Chee Quee |first=Tracey |date=2020-05-30 |access-date=2025-03-05 |website=[[University of Technology Sydney]]}} * {{cite journal | last=Gentilli | first=Joseph | title=Italian Jewish refugees in Australia | journal=Australian Jewish Historical Society Journal | volume=10 | issue=5 | date=1989 | issn=0819-0615 | pages=420–440 | url=https://collections.ajhs.com.au/Detail/objects/53096 | access-date=2025-03-19}} * {{Citation | author1=Claudio Alcorso | title=University Centenary Committee Oral History Project / Interview with Claudio Alcorso | publication-date=1983 | url=https://trove.nla.gov.au/work/252027632 | access-date=5 March 2025}} * {{Citation | author1=Roe, M | title=Claudio Alcorso interviewed for the University of Tasmania Oral History Project 1978 - 1983 | publication-date=1983-09-22 | publisher=University of Tasmania | url=https://trove.nla.gov.au/work/258425993 | access-date=5 March 2025}} * {{Citation | author1=Alcorso, Claudio | title=Claudio Alcorso. -Interview- | journal=Little, Graham. Speaking for Myself | publication-date=1989 | issue=1989 | pages=255–266 | url=https://trove.nla.gov.au/work/39130969 | access-date=5 March 2025}} * {{Citation | author1=Alcorso, Claudio | title=Interview Claudio Alcorso. -by Sharples, Liz- | journal=Siglo (Sandy Bay, Tas) | publication-date=1994 | issue=2 | pages=20–24 | url=https://trove.nla.gov.au/work/39066240 | access-date=5 March 2025}}
== External links == {{external media | float = right | caption = Two YouTube videos <!-- text placed left or right of headerimage ---> | headerimage= [[File:YouTube 2024.svg|alt=YouTube logo|x20px|left]] | video1 = [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_-7TuGEYqT8 Glimpses: Claudio Alcorso (1979)] | video2 = [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gU9XyK_z0sM Entrepreneurial Migrants (1979)] }} * [https://www.sheridan.com.au/our-founder Sheridan - Our Founder] * [https://www.moorilla.com.au/about/history/ Moorilla Estate History]
{{DEFAULTSORT:Alcorso, Claudio}} [[Category:1913 births]] [[Category:2000 deaths]] [[Category:Italian emigrants to Australia]] [[Category:Australian businesspeople]] [[Category:Australian winemakers]] [[Category:Australian environmentalists]] [[Category:20th-century Italian Jews]] [[Category:Members of the Order of Australia]]