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Alessandro Michele took the reigns at Gucci just one year ago, but what a year it's been. Awards for the designer, celebrity placements, more magazine covers than any other fashion brand, and most importantly: boosted sales. Michele seems to know what the people — be they stylists, editors, or shoppers — want.
One year in, it's fun to see Michele (who has been with the company since 2002) developing signatures of his own within the legacy of Gucci. He has consistently presented something of a paradoxical young granny, calling to mind Margot Tenenbaum and Grey Gardens. Today's fall 2016 runway was no different. The oversized glasses and backless loafers lined in kangaroo fur that were sent out this time last year reappeared, as did flora and fauna motifs (today it was serpents and jaguars). Favorite colors seem to be emerging, too: Pepto pink, bright teal, and nods to the company's signature red, green, and cream have been constants in Michele's Gucci collections.
The pairing of those house colors, including striped belts and socks, felt more present today than in prior collections from Michele, as did the use of double G logo. The latter is thanks in part to a collaboration with GucciGhost, a Brooklyn-based artist who's been appropriating the iconic logo in graffiti art and on bootleg clothes. "I saw the way [GucciGhost] was using the symbol of the company and I thought it was quite genius," Michele told WWD.
Instead of chasing after dude with a lawsuit, Michele invited the artist in to work on official Gucci product together. "It’s completely different than the idea of copying," the designer explained. "It’s the idea that you try to [take to] the street, through language like graffiti, the symbols of the company." The result included a hand-done version of the logo covering a silk midi skirt (slide 41), and plenty of graffitied-up handbags that will certainly skyrocket to It bag status starting in three, two... done.