Dolce and Gabbana brought sexy back for autumn/winter 2022. Read on for the key takeaways from the show, below.
The show was inspired by all things sensual
The Dolce & Gabbana invitation arrived in a lacquered red box containing a suspender belt and stockings. “A fetish dream inside a box,” was how the designers described it via translators in an Italian conference on the morning of their show. Following last month’s men’s show, which imagined a trip into the metaverse, Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana continued their study of the real and virtual. “We try to make the fantasy real. We do the inverse process. We normally take something that’s real and develop it as unreal, but in this case, we dream up an avatar and try to make it real,” Gabbana explained.
They evoked virtual reality through tailoring
Drawing on the visual language of video games, the designers employed tailoring to cut a graphic silhouette that didn’t just evoke the exaggerated shapes we associate with virtual reality, but exemplified the broadened shoulders and nipped-in waists that are taking this season’s runways by storm. On Dolce & Gabbana’s podium, said shoulder was either sloped or almost inflated-looking. It was the designers’ way of pushing reality to an extreme. “The challenge is to do something with tailoring that’s like a cartoon, challenging proportion and volume,” Dolce explained.
Innerwear was at the forefront
Living up to the promise of their invitation, the designers imbued their magnified silhouettes with memories of lingerie and garments from the boudoir, evoking through contrast fabric inserts the contour of a negligee or the curve of a brassiere. Playing with the filters of the metaverse, they layered outfits with transparent bodies worn either under or over bras, suspender belts and stockings, seductively veiling what they called “the fetish dream”. Towards the end of the collection, the ribbons of corsetry multiplied into tops and dresses cinched and tied from all angles; an unreal effect in itself.
Then, the metaverse really came to life
“Exploring new territories and experimenting always excite us and make us think,” Gabbana said. “The metaverse is something that doesn’t belong to our generation but we were so interested in discovering more about it and being able to speak to this new generation, showing our savoir-faire.” They demonstrated their expert craftsmanship to the max in otherworldly looks: puffer coats that covered the head like a video game character, patent dresses with over-dimensional gigot sleeves, and a curvy padded crop top and matching skirt that resembled balloons tied together.
It’s still all about real-life craftsmanship
With their Machine Gun Kelly soundtrack and articulated desire for exploring this elusive metaverse so specific to the new generations, Dolce and Gabbana are entirely transparent in their mission. This isn’t about assuming the esoteric knowledge of the youth, but about showing new generations of shoppers that what they know – artisanal excellence – can be used to amplify the dress codes of the digital era. At the end of the day, there is no such thing as the metaverse, because you can never touch and feel it. Age-old craftsmanship, on the other hand, is about as real as it gets. And as Dolce reminded us, “Instagram only exists if you have a life outside of it.”
Read Next: 5 Things to Know About Chanel’s Art-Infused Spring/Summer 2022 Couture Show
Originally published on Vogue.co.uk
