Dolce & Gabbana invitation arrived with a generously sized tablet playing a film cementing the “DNA Evolution” Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana are establishing as their legacy. The designer duo is no longer fussed about seasonal reinvention, choosing instead to focus on continuity and longevity. And so, the short film – which also opened the show at Metropol – carved out that heritage: “Dolce & Gabbana is famiglia, bellezza, amore, tradizione, devozione, innovazione, millennials,” and so on. It went on to outline the contrasts that define the brand, from “religion vs. superstition” to “sacred vs. profane”, “erotico vs. cattolico”, “king vs. the people”, “pasta vs. pomodoro” and all the way to “super models vs. social media stars.” Both were represented in the show, opened by Cameron Dallas and closed by Naomi Campbell.
“We wanted to think of all the generations. Not only our generation or the millennial generation,” the designers wrote in an email after the show.
“Fashion is lucky because it speaks to everyone without any limitation of race, ethnicity or age. And we are lucky that we can express ourselves in different ways, letting professional models, older women, and non-models walk on the runway.” If Domenico and Stefano have been accused of focusing too heavily on the millennials that have driven their shows in recent seasons, this was the empire striking back with all the senior citizens in sports and streetwear it took to emphasise their absolute prerogative: these designers will not be put in a box. They’ll do whatever they please, whenever they please. And sometimes, they’ll throw Monica Bellucci into their show – the most perfect person to ever wear Dolce & Gabbana – just because they can. If the show shenanigans are impossible to predict at this Italian house of love, the collections themselves are little more foreseeable, simply for the fact that Dolce & Gabbana have established those aforementioned codes of continuity.
On Saturday afternoon, they were expressed in the gilded tailoring and streetwear that captures all the opposites detected in their “DNA Evolution”. Whether you’re a twenty-something boy roaming Milan in sweats and the new Super King sneaker, or a suit-wearing pensioner sipping spritzi on the Amalfi coast, the Dolce & Gabbana message is opulence. Often, of course, imbued with a certain sense of humour. And if there was a message to take away from this show apart from those spelled out to us on screen, it’s perhaps that the chase for the millennial market isn’t as easy as ice cold marketing schemes. It’s a fluid, evolving and all-accepting entity, which has to start in a place of authenticity. As far as being true to themselves goes, Domenico and Stefano can’t be faulted.
