Since taking the helm at Gucci, Alessandro Michele has revitalised the brand. Wonderland takes a look at his best work thus far.
The Furry Loafer
As Phoebe Philo’s take on the Birkenstocks showed us, fashion loves a furry shoe. So it makes sense that Alessandro’s spin on the iconic Gucci horse-bit loafer has proved one of the most coveted, impossible-to-buy pieces around.
Bows on Blouses (for the guys)
If there was one design decision that heralded the arrival of a new Gucci more than any other it was to put guys in blouse type shirts complete with bows. The smooth internationalist image of previous menswear collections was displaced by an altogether more interesting one: the artist, the poet, the dandy.
Fur Coats
These are at the heart of that Margo Tenenbaum vibe which the fashion press has become enamoured with recently. The term ‘librarian’ has been used a lot but Alessandro’s pieces have enough Gucci flair to make them a little more luxurious than that.
Catwalk Androgyny
While progressive designers like JW Anderson have been playing with gender for a while now, recent Gucci women’s shows have been smattered with guys (and vice-versa), cementing the notion that the new Gucci is a rather more thoughtful brand than it was in its blinged out days.
70s Upholstery Fabrics
What better way to subvert that once-held-wisdom that the 70s was the decade interior design forgot than by brazenly resurrecting its most garish furniture textiles and transmuting them into beautiful clothes?
Boys with Flair
Flairs may have been on the girl’s fashion agenda for several seasons now, but have yet to make such an impact on guys’ wardrobes. Alessandro makes a case for them like no one else, embracing their sheer flamboyance by pairing them with long coats in exotic skins for a 70s-rock-fop look.
Floral Print Suits
It’s as if Gucci’s well-tailored, jet-set heritage suddenly went off the deep end – and they’re available in his-‘n’-hers for the eccentric power couples among you.
Words: Benji Walters
