Alessandro Michele, creative director at Gucci, and Harry Styles, one of the label’s most famous ambassadors, have a longstanding friendship. Styles frequently sports flamboyant Gucci looks when performing and co-chaired this year’s camp-themed Met Gala with the designer, which sponsored the event. The two even attended the event together. In 2019, they are the epitome of a non-toxic-masculinity bromance.
In celebration of Harry Styles’ latest album, Fine Line, which came out last week, Alessandro is once again showing the former boyband sensation his support by releasing a limited-edition graphic T-shirt. The sustainably-made white tee features a simple but bold drawing of an arrow piercing a bleeding heart with the artist’s name written in it, while the album title is scribbled around the heart’s exterior. A pretty straightforward design, but simple band merch tends to age better. Adding another level of exclusivity, the shirt will only be available until Thursday on Harry Styles’ website and a portion of the proceeds will benefit the Global Fund for Women.
The Harry Styles x Alessandro Michele T-shirt is available online now.
Giambattista Valli has earned critical a for his extravagant and romantic Haute couture gowns, worn by the likes of Ariana Grande, Amal Clooney, and the ultimate sartorial honor Rihanna. One can imagine that’s why the Italian designer avoided making menswear, for it used to be so drab and move at only a fraction of the pace of the women’s fashion cycle. But the times have changed — menswear is now front and center, with industry figureheads being admired as if they were rock stars. And with more eyes on it than ever before, Giambattista Valli is finally joining the conversation with its first men’s range made in collaboration with H&M.
Fortunately, the designer doesn’t compromise any of his lavish showmanship on behalf of menswear. The pieces are as showy as ever — a sequin blazer adds some pop flair to traditional tailoring, as does a printed tiger-stripe suit. And floral prints are planted throughout the collection to add some softness to the staple pieces.
The Giambattista Valli x H&M collection launches in stores and online on November 7.
Dior‘s final look at its Fall 2019 Couture show in Paris really brought the house down. The made-to-be-viral doll dress (paired with a mesh veil) was a brilliantly camp ode to the historic French designer’s legacy and a new spin on the wedding dress. Creative director Maria Grazia Chiuri designed the spectacle with feminist artist Penny Slinger whose work explored gender and sexuality themes throughout the ’70s and ’80s. Slinger is known for her frequent use of dolls in her work, using them as vehicles to explore sensuality.
Watch the full Dior Fall 2019 Couture show below — peep the dress 12:27 minutes in.
After a captivating presentation in Rome yesterday, Gucci continues to dominate the cultural conversation with its Cruise 2020 collection. The Italian designer hit all the appropriate marks for an inclusive and political show in 2019: reproductive rights took center stage, while the label’s embrace of gender fluidity and sustainability efforts were all embedded throughout the presentation — the cherry on top was an exclusive performance by the legendary Stevie Nicks and Gucci’s unofficial mascot Harry Styles.
Since Alessandro Michele took over the label in 2015, the public has come to expect opulent and theatrical collections that are as clever as they are excessive. Michele has a talent for taking cultural references and elevating them to new contemporary heights through his idiosyncratic perspective — past collections have paid homage to institutions as niche as feminist scholar Donna Haraway (Fall ’18) to the more universally recognized New York Yankees (Pre-Fall ’18). But for its latest, the designer opted for a more timely statement by acknowledging the recent attacks on reproductive rights (most likely Alabama’s plan to ban all abortion). Some looks were as blatantly pro-choice as a suit with a print that read “My Body, My Choice,” while others were more subtle in their execution, like a scarf with “22.05.1978,” aka the date a law that protected legal abortions in Italy was put into effect, printed on it.
Gucci has never shied away from voicing its political stance. Last year the brand donated $500,000 to the March for Our Lives and sent a team of representatives to march alongside the young gun-control activists. But rather than launching a full-on spectacle, the lavish designer showed its solidarity with a cause in a way that seemed sincere rather than pseudo-woke spectacle. And quite simply, the clothes spoke for themselves.
Fresh from hosting the 2019 Met Gala, newly appointed Camp king Harry Styles is back in a new Gucci Tailoring campaign. Shot by famed director Harmony Korine, the latest image series captures the former One Direction-er and some animal friends in some surreal-ish backdrops furnished with antiques and oddities — the setting says Grey Gardens, but the immaculate tailoring and whimsical color scheme give off a Wes Anderson vibe. And in an accompanying video, Korine’s signature grainy camerawork only enhances the overall opulent absurdism.
Styles’ relationship with Gucci is a strong one — he most recently attended the Met Gala with the Italian label’s creative director and fellow co-host Alessandro Michele — and he starred in last year’s campaign, which was shot in a fish shop in London. Check out the video below.
The Met Gala — aka the Super Bowl of Fashion — is always an opportune moment to flex fashion literacy. The night’s theme was Camp: Notes on Fashion, and with such a niche and subjective concept, it’s clear that some guests did their homework more than others. We highlight some of the night’s biggest Camp moments below.
It’s the first Monday of May, which can only mean one thing: the Met Gala. With this year’s theme being something as fun and subjective as ‘Camp,’ it should make for a delightfully tongue-in-cheek red carpet. (Fingers crossed.) For those of us who won’t be attending the benefit tonight, we’ve rounded up some of the best menswear items from Mr. Porter to add a little camp to your everyday look before you go see Camp: Notes on Fashionwhen it opens on Thursday. Read on.
Gucci is the official sponsor of the exhibition, with creative director Alessandro Michele serving as one of the hosts, and this heavy-metal-inspired graphic shirt is the perfect way to show gratitude.
When the Met revealed back in September that Camp was the next theme for its annual fashion exhibition, the world was excited yet perplexed as to what exactly ‘Camp’ was — myself included. So by centering it around Susan Sontag’s influential 1964 essay Notes on Camp, which helped introduce the phenomenon to the masses, the Costume Institute does a solid job examining and contextualizing the hard-to-define cult style and its relationship to fashion over the years. No matter how familiar you are with the aesthetic, Camp: Notes on Fashion (open May 9th) is a generally fun exhibition that chronicles Camp in all its absurd yet sincere grandeur.
The exhibition is divided into 2 segments — the first explores the history of Camp and the second displays its impact on contemporary fashion design. Over 200 cultural artifacts are displayed, including sculptures, paintings, and clothing, from as early as the 17th century to today. Excerpts from Sontag’s essay are prominently featured throughout the course of the exhibition to provide additional context to understand the true essence of the aesthetic and how it manifests in different aspects of society.
The grand finale of the exhibit is an open room filled with some of the greatest Camp moments in fashion. Highlights include the Marjan Pejoski swan dress (later made famous by Björk at the 2001 Oscars), the Hedi-Slimane-era Saint Laurent heart dress from FW16 (later made famous by Rihanna on the early morning streets of SoHo), and the Thierry Mugler AW95 haute couture half-shell dress (later made famous by Cardi B at the 2019 Grammy Awards). And with the Met Gala later — hosted by Harry Styles, Lady Gaga, Serena Williams, and Alessandro Michele, creative director of Gucci (who’s sponsoring the exhibition) — it’s likely some new iconic Camp moments will occur on the red carpet tonigh. Stay tuned.
Camp: Notes on Fashion is on display from May 9 – September 8, 2019. Get a quick crash course in Camp below.
Images: Courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
The theme for next year’s exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum of Art Costume Institute is CAMP. Coming to the museum next spring, the exhibition will explore various camp themes, as referenced in Susan Sontag’s 1964 essay ‘Notes on ‘Camp.” Due to the fun and theatrical nature of camp, it should be a good one.
Even better, Gucci will be sponsoring the presentation and camp queen turned A Star is Born star Lady Gaga, Gucci’s creative director Alessandro Michele, former One Direction-er turned rock star Harry Styles, the greatest living athlete Serena Williams, and of course the reigning queen of Conde Nast Anna Wintour have been announced as co-chairs.
The Met Gala will be held on May 6th 2019, and the exhibition, ‘Camp: Notes on Fashion,’ will be on display May 9th – September 8th. You have until then to figure out what ‘camp’ is.
