FLORENTINE NIGHTS
Gucci presented its latest resort collection in the house’s birthplace, the Renaissance-era city of Florence.
Gucci presented its latest resort collection in the house’s birthplace, the Renaissance-era city of Florence.
“IT WAS SUCH A UNIQUE DISPLAY OF CREATIVE THOUGHT AND INSPIRATION”
For Gucci’s resort ’18 show, creative director Alessandro Michele chose to bring the storied house’s latest collection back to its Florentine roots – the first Gucci presentation in its hometown since 1995 and the days of Tom Ford. And what better venue than one of most famous of Florence’s grand buildings, the Renaissance-era Palazzo Pitti, once owned by the Medici family and now a public museum?
The Palazzo Pitti is currently closed for restorations: Gucci was granted unprecedented access to the palatial complex as the Florentine house has been an active partner in the massive restoration project, donating €2 million to bring the palazzo’s extensive Boboli Gardens back to their former glory.
Before the presentation of the resort collection, guests gathered across the Arno river at the Uffizi Gallery, which hosts a breathtaking collection of paintings and sculptures from the likes of Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Botticelli, Caravaggio and Titian, to name but a few. Amid heavy security, show-goers were ushered in small groups into the Vasari corridor, a kilometre-long enclosed and elevated walkway between the second floor of the Uffizi and the grounds of the Palazzo Pitti, once used by the Medici and highranking officials to safely travel around the city and across the Arno above the renowned Ponte Vecchio bridge.
The resort show itself took place in the palazzo’s Palatine Gallery, across seven rooms filled with priceless Renaissance art, with models walking a path created by two lines of velvet rope through the seated guests. Michele described the theme of the collection as “Renaissance meets rock’n’roll”. “I like popular culture and this is the reason why I like the Renaissance, because it is super pop,” Michele announced. “Pop means we all understand it and admire it.”
“It was such a unique display of creative thought and inspiration,” says Vogue Australia fashion director Christine Centenera of the show. “We’ve come to expect no less from Alessandro. For a relatively young man he displays intellect and imagination beyond just fashion but into the realm of arts and pop culture.”