The Vatican vestment designer widely known for creating liturgical garments for the last three pontificates has spoken publicly about his homosexuality and his continued work preparing papal vestments following the election of Pope Leo XIV.
According to LifeSiteNews, Italian designer Filippo Sorcinelli marked 25 years of work connected to the Vatican by granting an interview to the Italian newspaper Il Corriere della Sera on August 3. During the interview, Sorcinelli reflected on his career, his personal life, and what he described as a renewed mission following the election of the new Pope.
Sorcinelli said that after Pope Leo XIV’s election, Vatican officials asked him to concentrate on preparing the Holy Father’s liturgical image.
“It was like a calling, a summons back to duty,” Sorcinelli said, according to Il Corriere della Sera, as reported by LifeSiteNews.
The designer also revealed that he had considered stepping away from designing sacred vestments after years of working closely with Pope Francis, describing the period as an “existential” crisis. Despite those struggles, he said he has already completed the vestments Pope Leo XIV is expected to wear during major liturgical celebrations in Assisi on August 6 and Rimini on August 22, according to the report.
The interview revisited Sorcinelli’s public declaration of his homosexuality approximately 15 years ago. According to LifeSiteNews, Sorcinelli said a business competitor disclosed his sexual orientation in an attempt to damage his reputation within Church circles, prompting him to address the matter publicly himself.
Outside his ecclesiastical commissions, Sorcinelli maintains a highly visible public profile documenting both his professional work and his personal life. According to a documentary released by ARTE.tv on May 31 and cited by LifeSiteNews, Sorcinelli lives with Yuri, whom the documentary identifies as his “husband.” The report states the two have been together since 2016 and entered into a civil union in 2021.
Speaking about his social media presence, Sorcinelli described his Instagram account as an “open book” dating back to 2013. He said he prefers to present himself “completely naked, both literally and metaphorically,” according to the interview.
LifeSiteNews also reported that the documentary depicts the couple’s home containing numerous pieces of antique artwork, including Buddhist and Hindu statues. It further states that Sorcinelli’s Roman showroom employs Giuseppe Didio, a former Catholic priest who left the priesthood after 16 years and now openly identifies as homosexual.
The documentary also highlights Sorcinelli’s fragrance business, which includes perfumes marketed under both religious and secular themes. According to LifeSiteNews, Sorcinelli said he sprays one of his incense-based fragrances inside each box containing newly completed liturgical vestments, describing the practice as a way to “complete the sensory experience.”
Sorcinelli’s relationship with Vatican liturgical celebrations began during the pontificate of Pope Benedict XVI. According to LifeSiteNews, he began collaborating with the Office for Liturgical Celebrations in 2007 after earlier commissions for Italian bishops. In a 2019 interview referenced by the publication, Sorcinelli reflected on his work by saying, “Benedict needed me,” adding, “Beyond their role, [the popes] are people just like us.”
The report notes that Sorcinelli designed the jeweled miter and accompanying liturgical vestments used by Pope Benedict XVI during his 2008 apostolic journey to Genoa. LifeSiteNews also observed that the Vatican’s liturgical vestment tradition includes other long-established makers, including the historic Gammarelli family, which has produced clerical garments in Rome since 1798.
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