Dolce & Gabbana. From the heart to the hands at the Palazzo Esposizioni in Rome is a thematic exhibition journey among clothes, artistic inspiration, and popular tradition. Last days to visit the exhibition, which will close its doors on August 13.
Dolce & Gabbana ride the trends and launch a digital collection at auction
Can luxury clothing and accessories – bags and watches – go to auction? The Genesi Collection, by Dolce & Gabbana, went to auction for six million dollars and is (almost) completely virtual. It was presented on August 28, 2021, in Venice during the full “metaverse” trend. There were 9 original creations auctioned for the amount of 1885.73 ETH (almost 6 million). The peculiarity was, however, that they were wearable clothes in the digital dimension. NFT – non-fungible token – produced in collaboration with UNXD. Two dresses, a men’s suit, and two tiaras correspond to physical versions designed by Dolce & Gabbana, then transfigured into digital to be flaunted in the metaverse. Four other models were designed exclusively as custom virtual garments.
Fashion in contemporary visual art museums?
Can fashion be shown in contemporary art museums? This is the question we discussed with a friend. There are museums dedicated to applied arts like the Victoria & Albert that have rightly been offering exhibitions dedicated to the world of fashion for years. I remember the exhibitions on Cartier jewelry, Christian Dior: Designer of Dreams, Mary Quant…
Perhaps, however, Palazzo delle Esposizioni (Rome) or Palazzo Reale (Milan), or even earlier the MAXXI for Memorabile Ipermoda, are not the right places to be assigned to this use. Simply because it would be appropriate to promote, first and foremost, contemporary visual art in these museums created with this goal. It would be more stimulating to see visual art that communicates in an enriching way with fashion. Not giving space to exhibitions that are already packaged and modular.
The D&G exhibition “Dal cuore alle mani”
The exhibition is divided into 14 thematic rooms. It starts from the first room “handmade”, a compendium that begins with the concept of Grand Tour. Considering the Italian regions, Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana have reworked their Alta Moda proposal starting from the reinterpretation of local craftsmanship. The majolica of Capri, the architecture of the Apulian trulli, the white ceramics of Grottaglie, the chromatic tones, the Venetian glass and silks, the multicolored feathers of parrots that recall the Mediterranean exuberance of Portofino, the Palermo cassata, the wools, the cottons, the fresh pasta and the Sardinian mamuthones, the Florentine applied arts, the nativity scenes of San Gregorio Armeno, the corsets and masks of Marzamemi inspire the fabrics and patterns of the clothes and accessories. The room is built with a central core that develops in height like a wedding cake.
On the walls, the paintings of Anh Duong, an artist born in France but with Spanish and Vietnamese origins, respond to a long-term collaboration. Transformed into oil and acrylic brushstrokes, models in the flesh and unforgettable actresses like Claudia Cardinale and Naomi Campbell.
From the master glassmakers to Il Gattopardo, from the Sicilian carts to the baroque
The exhibition continues with cornucopian garments, sparkling with crystals that look to the Venetian lagoon. From chandeliers to Murano mirrors, hanging drops and quartz enclose the prism of the color spectrum. The Alta Moda collection was presented in front of the Doge’s Palace in Venice in 2021. The third room pays homage to the film masterpiece by Luchino Visconti, an adaptation of the novel by Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa: Il Gattopardo.
The Alta Moda of the 2017 fashion shows take up the mandalic compositions of a kaleidoscope, the cart and the Sicilian horse trappings. Not forgetting the ceramics of Caltagirone, Monreale, and Santo Stefano di Camastra. The fourth is an immaculate triumph that starts from the baroque. The inspiration comes from the Palermo stuccoes of Giacomo Serpotta (1656-1732). The dresses become puffy and opulent, armors – made with 3D printing – that seem made of cotton candy and soft marble.
Horsehair and wadding are used to restore volume and three-dimensionality, covered with duchess and mikado.
The Opera, the Tailoring, the architectural and pictorial inspiration
Halfway through the journey, fashion merges with music. The setup reproduces a typical Italian Opera theater with stalls and boxes. At the back, a table is set with a rich banquet. Guests are the most famous characters from the most renowned operas: La Traviata, Attila, Aida, Rigoletto, and Don Carlo by Giuseppe Verdi; Tosca, Madama Butterfly, La fanciulla del West and Turandot by Giacomo Puccini; Norma and I Capuleti e i Montecchi by Vincenzo Bellini; Cavalleria Rusticana by Pietro Mascagni; Il Barbiere di Siviglia by Gioachino Rossini...
An environment flaunts, instead, the clothes that reproduce with needle and thread fragments of art history. It ranges from the Portrait of a Gentleman by Giovan Battista Moroni to the Madonna Bardi by Sandro Botticelli. Furthermore, the Baptism of Christ by Piero della Francesca, the Basket of Fruit by Caravaggio, and the Madonna with Child by Titian are embroidered on jackets and even sweatshirts.
The Temple of Concord in Agrigento and the mosaic tiles
The deities of Olympus, the Temple of Concordia (Agrigento), and the stories depicted on Attic vases flow into the autumn-winter 2019-2020 collection. The Arab-Norman hybridization of the Monreale Cathedral informs the Haute Couture 2017 show. Golden threads and weaves of tunics and coats echo the thousands of mosaic tiles. The same happens for the autumn-winter 2021-2022 show presented in Venice. Here the protagonists are the Byzantine mosaics of the Basilica of San Marco in Venice.
Anatomy sartorial, Cinema and Sardinian Art
In the thought behind the creations of Dolce & Gabbana, the corset is fundamental, from which the definition of the silhouette starts. The corset recalls both the 18th-19th century use and the lingerie, and thus the sensual imagery of Helmut Newton. The bones that compose it replace the structure of the torso and for the two designers allow the body to be reformulated, “shaping the flesh”.
The screening of the film Devotion by Giuseppe Tornatore, about the backstage that led to the realization of the show at Piazza Pretoria in Palermo, does not conclude the exhibition.
The winter collections 2024-2025 were presented in Sardinia. Haute Couture in the Archaeological Park of Nora, founded in the 8th century BC, while Haute Tailoring in a rustic farmhouse where the procession of Sant’Efisio, held in Cagliari every May, was evoked. The collections draw on the “Sardinian weaving techniques such as the “pibiones,” the grape cluster motifs handcrafted on ancient looms, or the decorations inspired by the fauna and flora that refer to the unique tradition of coccoi pintau, the sculpted bread”.
Standout items include Corsets, cups and belts, necklaces and dangling earrings characterized by the openwork mesh of filigree.
Coats, overcoats, and black-and-white blouses look to the “mastruca,” the traditional attire of Sardinian shepherds. It is a coat of raw wool that has become iconic because it is worn by the mamuthones during the carnival of Mamoiada.
She has collaborated for many years with art magazines such as Artribune, XIBT Contemporary, ArtApp, Insideart and Espoarte, preferring contemporary art in its many facets and media drifts.
