For the women’s collection, the design team tries to take the onlookers back to Tom Ford’s erotic and glamorous era.
February 28, 2023: Without a creative director at the helm, Gucci’s Fall Winter 2023 women’s collection was co-created by the in-house team, who collaborated, improvised, drew elements from the past and present, and paved the way for a new dimension in the brand’s heritage. Fittingly, the entire team streamed to the stage after the show to take a bow.
Much like the men's 2023 collection, the design team turned to its archive for inspiration. The women’s collection paid homage to several Gucci archival pieces from the 1990s and 2010s that defined the brand as one of the most dynamic luxury labels. The show opened with models emerging from elevators to the runway, filling the spherical podiums with nostalgia.
The Tom Ford era inspired ensemble is sleek and sensual, reviving various popular silhouettes of Gucci, mixed with an electrically sumptuous color palette of the 2010s. There were sheer fabric skirts, faux fur coats, metal bras, and kitten heels, suggesting Alessandro Michele’s signature flair for giving a fresh twist to a nostalgic silhouette.
From soft romanticism to power chic to blatant eroticism, the collection spanned a variety of moods, fabrics, silhouettes and designs to evoke a cornucopia of emotions.
The collection spanned through many eras and drew upon the various eternally classic Gucci pieces, such as the rounded trapezoid chain bag adorned with the horsebit, interpreted in padded, shearling, crystal and contrast-leather manifestations. Boxing boots and basketball sneakers inject the collection with a faint hint of sportswear.
A highlight of the show was the Jackie bag that appeared in its original shape but softened in construction and adapted in two-tone colors and GG-embossed leather. The classic Gucci loafer is elevated on rubber soles, while snow boots originally designed for the 1960s’ ski collection re-emerge tacked up with horsebits. Thanks to the creative flair of Gucci’s in house team, the collection highlights the brand’s heritage and as well its visionaries that fronted it.
Not long ago, Gucci announced ex-Valentino Sabato De Sarno as its new creative director, who is yet to present his debut collection. Gucci’s quiet transition has been impressive so far, but how Mr. De Sarno’s vision will bring out Gucci remains to be seen. He will present his first collection in September 2023.
- By Pritha Debroy
Post your comment