collage made by me, and original photos from Vogue
Fashion week isn't necessarily a competition, but if you think about it, it could be, and maybe it should be. An immense amount of excellent reviews for a show is equivalent to the first place prize, correct? If this were true, then it's an obvious answer as to who won that award -- Alessandro Michele.
He's a name everyone should know by now, a.k.a. the new creative director of Gucci, the luxury brand that fits the definition of Italian high fashion. Michele has been the head designer for the brand for only a little over a year, but everyone, and I mean everyone, feels his strong influence over how he sustained the brand of Gucci but also created this new and brilliant, look for himself as a designer. He should be on everyone's top 10 list. He's definitely on mine, ever since his breathtaking SS16 show for Gucci last year.
There comes a rare moment in fashion month when the unbelievable happens, when everything falls into place, when a show gets 11 out of 10 stars, a 110%, a better than perfect. And for the past two seasons, Michele has been able to achieve this rare fashion moment, the moment all designers hope to attain. With Gucci, it's hard to find the mistakes. That's a designer's cue to know they've made it.
Michele introduces this collection of an impressive 70 looks that is a combination of probably a dozen different inspirations and styles. A dose of Italian Renaissance, as always, with a hint of '70s glam, Catherine de' Medici, vintage wallpaper-inspired prints, geek-chic glasses, and a touch of what Michele does best -- over accessorize. Oh, also add the fact that a New York street artist by the name of Trouble Andrew added a 2016 twist with graffiti-inspired designs to contrast with that vintage feel, because Michele's pieces have to have that it-factor, even if they already had it from the beginning of the planning period. Also, casting my favorite photographer/it-girl Petra Collins (who, I have discovered, is the epitome of a Gucci girl) as a model for the show may be the final detail to make the show a perfect 10.
Alessandro Michele's pathway to winning is a complex explanation, but it starts here: pair basic pleated midis with either really sophisticated tops, pearls and sequined bow included, or a basic tee and a bleached denim bomber (don't forget the fur-cuffs). But go overboard with the prints, no matter what. Also, tube socks with strappy heels can make or break your outfit, but I lean more towards the making option (and I think Michele did too).
Gucci thinks pantsuits are back in, so maybe working that Dana Scully look can actually be a thing again. Michele was able to make the most feminine and sophisticated one with a red and gold brocade print with a sequined bow and '70s-esque platforms, but he also says that masculine ones with a duller plaid pattern are okay too, just add at least one accessory, no matter how subtle, or the look will fail. That's what I love about this collection -- there are completely contrasting looks that fall on the opposite side of the spectrum, but Gucci is still able to make it all work together as a whole. I think only fashion geniuses can pull that stunt off.
Snakeskin textures may be in, but Alessandro Michele says that actual snakes should be in, so he created several looks that were snake-centric with the slithering creature creating unique lines and shapes for his garments. He made a classic silk pleated dress vicious by adding a unique embroidery of a few snakes, or he continued the racy style of a black lace gown with a sequined snake sliding across the chest. Maybe if Michele was even more bold, he could have had real snakes crawling across the runway. I would assume most are glad that he stuck with just the clothes.
Sequins are nice, but sequins over a black sheer fabric is even nicer, especially when they abstractly resemble snakes (Gucci should just trademark snakes already). It can be made into a gown with puffy sleeves, or a midi skirt to be paired with a wild sweater filled with embroidered parrots and the illuminati sign. Is this the beginning of a conspiracy created by Alessandro Michele himself?
Prints are everything to Gucci (and so are colors and details), so Michele took the print idea to the next level by putting a collage of cherubs on a skirt (and strapless dress) to connect to his Italian roots. Who knew creepy paintings of babies from the 16th century could look so good on a person? The designer is even able to double print -- a Leonardo Davinci esque sun (face included) on top of a print that looks like it came straight from an Italian church. The most innovative part about his prints is that Michele really plays with color when it comes to them -- he washes out the babies with a deep red (does this make it even more creepy?), and he transfers a traditional print to a modern one with a bright turquoise. Gucci may be the reason why I'll become a fan of bright colors.
One of the reasons why Gucci feels so new this season is that Michele takes traditional pieces and adds a touch of his magic to create masterpieces. A cape is nothing new, but adding a graphic pattern to resemble folds and ruffles is. A jacquard coat is nothing we've never seen before, but a shin-length one that acts as a dress with shaggy fur cuffs may just be. This is what makes Michele a brilliant designer -- he's never satisfied with simple or the already-seen; he needs to have an extra level of fascination that makes his collections truly beautiful.
Movement seemed to be a recurring motif in Gucci's show, and Michele did not stick with simple versions. He used light fabrics or heavy ruffled ones to create pieces that flew across the stage, whether it was a cape across an ankle-grazing dress, huge bow included, or an elegant, long-sleeved floral gown. Michele also used unique prints to help those garments soar on their own, but these prints are nothing new. We've seen them in past collections, but they just seem to be getting bigger and better.
And we may think by now that it's gotta be the prints that made the show, or maybe the diversity of styles made it a truly special one. But in the end, I think it's due to the details, the small things Michele does that make great pieces excellent and out-there. Simply adding a puff of fur to a zebra-striped heel turns classic into idiosyncratic, adding a graffiti-styled "REAL" to a bag with an embossed Gucci logo creates a contrast of styles and a statement that most are not able to pull off. The use of huge bows in varying colors makes Michele's collection an individualistic one, and the juxtaposition of a funeral-themed mesh veil and oversized men's overcoat can produce noteworthy pieces that stand out to every fashion lover out there. I feel like the only way to describe Gucci's collection is to use fancy literary words like juxtaposition and idiosyncratic, and using these words is a compliment to the designer because it means he cares about so much more than the clothes. Fashion is never just fashion, as Alexander Wang probably believes, and Michele follows this rule by, well, making up his own rules. And that is what creates this innovative feel we all see in Gucci's pieces -- structure or fashion-rules are not put into consideration, only bold statements and beautiful looks, rule-following or not, are. Alessandro Michele is not some one-hit-wonder designer we'll forget about in a year, or even one we get intimidated by -- he's warm, as Vogue weirdly describes him, because he does his thing without trying to appear above other designers. His "thing" sure is working, though, and maybe the warmness is why we're immediately attracted to his collections, or maybe just because they're damn good. Alessandro, would you like me to mail or personally deliver your first place trophy?
All photos from Vogue
Who do you think should have gotten that theoretical first place prize, if you strangely disagree with my winner?
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