Fall 2017/Spring 2018 Collections
GUCCI
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Phoebe Holden
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Word Count: 1753 Figure 3: Photo from SS18 Campaign showing painterly theme
i) Introduction ii) Fall 2017 Look
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Introduction
Contents
rends are constantly evolving, yet everything we see in the fashion world has been influenced by something that came before. Designers delve deep into history when constructing new collections, exploring traditional and antiquated ideas and reinterpreting them in a modern way. This leads to vintage-inspired collections that harmonise with our 21st-century philosophies.
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ucci is an Italian luxury brand producing apparel, accessories, beauty, and homeware. Their style is bold, iconic, and innovative, often taking inspiration from nature and communicating impeccable craftsmanship at every level. Alessandro Michele became the Creative Director at Gucci in 2015, aiming to communicate sensuality through eccentricity whilst preserving the Gucci aesthetic (Bowles, 2015).
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xamining looks from Gucci’s Fall 2017 and Spring 2018 campaigns will reveal their vintage influences and indefinitely prove how fashion is recycled and evolves through modern day consumer culture. This essay will decipher each look shown on the front cover, proposing the era from which they were inspired and how the vintage elements have been interpreted to coincide with modern culture.
iii) Spring 2018 Look iv)Conclusion v) References
Figure 5: Image from the AW17 Campaign depicting its vintage space-age inspiration
vi) Figures Figure 4: Photo of 3 women from SS18 Campaign showing further themes
Cover left: Chosen Gucci Fall 2017 Look Cover right: Chosen Gucci Spring 2018 Look
Fall 2017 The Look:
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wide, ruffled collar featuring a pussy bow engulfs the top of this dress, with the slightly tamer sleeves flaring open from the forearm. Below the natural waist the skirt falls to a maxi length with a slight train, abundant in ruffles and frills. This dress is striking in a deep, royal purple, matching the pearlbeaded, square-toed pumps. It is accessorised simply, with the model wearing a bright blonde wig and large gold rings on each finger.
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he periods which this essay identifies as predominantly inspiring this eye-catching look are an amalgamation of Victorian and Seventies.
Figure 6 (left): Front View of Look 41 from the AW17 show, chosen look
Figure 7: Bridal Dress from 1872 (France)
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he ruffled skirt with slight train reflects the bustled silhouette of the 1870s-1890s (see figure 7), where it was fashionable to have fullness at the rear in the form of large, frilled, and pleated skirts. The neckline trimmed with frills is also reminiscent of this era, and we can see in figure 7 how bows were also utilized in various forms (VAM, 2018). Each element of this style was used to exaggerate the appearance; more extravagant meant more expensive, exerting power and status. The restrictive nature of this style allows practicality only for the upper class or special occasions, as working women would be limited in their movements. Despite echoing this period in terms of the bustle, ruffles were not exclusive to the Victorian time and were visible in 16thcentury Spain and the Elizabethan era to name a few (Newland, 2017), thus it could be argued that this dress also takes influence from
Figure 8: Side view of Gucci AW17 dress, showing ruffles and train
each of these periods. While the Gucci dress removes the severity of the bustle, the rear retains volume through the frilled edges and train, conforming to the current body ideology (see figure 8).
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leeves ruffling or flaring just below the elbow were a less common Victorian trend, yet still occurred and are shown above on the bridal gown. Adapted into wide, flared cuffs for Gucci’s dress, their Victorian influence can be detected in their overstated fashion, although they appear larger in Gucci’s adaptation than Victorian ones. This element enhances the Victorian nostalgia within this piece, making the look more cohesive and dynamic.
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epresenting a nostalgia for this era further is the footwear. Square toed, low heeled, shoes were more prevalent in the mid19th century (see figure 9), where pumps decorated with bows or rosettes came into fashion due to a more modern, intricate taste (VAM, 2018). Gucci has reproduced this in a similar style, modernising it by exchanging the rosette for beaded pearls along the top of the shoe for a touch of luxury and class.
Figure 9: Square-toed shoes from 1855-65
Figure 6 Repeat
“The real star of the fashion picture is the wearer … you” British Vogue (Gristwood, and Eastoe, 2008, p36)
Figure 10: Woman in satin-like two piece in Studio 54, 1978
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arge and exaggerated ruffles are predominant in Gucci’s dress, arguably more so than in the Victorian era, propelling the viewer into the Seventies where ruffles and frills were back in style. The disco-fever trend, influenced by pop music and films such as Saturday Night Fever repopularised the ruffle (Leaper, 2017), and it was adapted in many ways throughout the generation. See figure 11, a dress with a ruffled collar and cuffs that featured in Vogue Italia, with outstanding similarities to the top of the Gucci AW17 dress, or even the gathers in figure 10 which form slight ruffles. These show only a couple of the ways this style was used yet prove that there is Seventies inspiration in Gucci’s dress. It is a well-established fact that the Seventies were all about individuality, creativity, and expression, words which emulate the aesthetic of this look and suggest Alessandro Michele was considering nostalgia for another time.
Figure 11: Ruffled Collar Dress from Vogue Italia 1971
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hile discussing the Seventies, it is important to note that the era was all about anti-fashion; “the freedom to wear what you want, where and when you want” (Steele, 2000), thus ‘trends’ were typically confined to small groups of people. This is the case for the shiny fabrics similar to that shown in figure 10 and on the Gucci dress, reminiscent of seventies Glam Rock and Studio 54 fashion. Gucci has subtly combined glam rock and disco, producing a shiny fabric that reflects the light as it moves, drawing attention and thus, controversy. Combined with the statement contrast between the models skin and her bright blonde wig, this look is the epitome of Seventies anti-fashion.
Figure 12: Margaret Thatcher in pussy-bow blouse
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nother appropriation of seventies culture and style is the bow. Before women’s officewear evolved into Eighties power dressing, a feminine take on the tie known as the pussy-bow became popular among women attempting to fit in to the previously men-only world. A strong advocate for this style was Margaret Thatcher
(see figure 12), who, despite being controversial, was the first female Prime Minister and wanted to look strong and powerful, yet feminine (Bain, 2015). This style has since kept its strong associations, and its use here could be interpreted as Gucci advocating for powerful women.
Spring 2018
Figure 13 (cropped)
The Look:
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nspiration could be argued to be taken from three eras – the Restoration of the Stuarts (late 17th century), post-WWII, and the Eighties - all of which will be explored in this section.
Figure 13 (left): Front View of Look 101 from the SS18 show, chosen look
Figure 14: Late 17th Century Winter Two-Piece Dress
eaturing a daringly low neckline and peplum waist, this look at first glance appears simple, yet closer examination reveals the intricate crystal beading along the neckline, seams and cuffs of the top. The bright fuchsia bow tied at the waist adds a feminine contrast in terms of shape and colour to the sharp tailoring and angled, lightly padded shoulders of the navy top. The straight-legged trousers in cobalt blue have a small pleat down the front to add to the structural aesthetic, and the look is completed with minimalist reflective sandals. It can be argued that this look is androgynous, as there are masculine and feminine elements working in harmony.
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hilst initially appearing th unrelated to 17 century dress, examining figure 14 shows that the SS18 Gucci look shares a certain few similarities with this era. Dresses like the one pictured in figure 14 often came in two parts, the corseted top drawing the waistline in and widening the hips before the addition of the separate skirt. Taking this inspiration, Gucci has adapted and updated the corset into a take on the peplum we see often in fashion today, with the silky belt and bow
accentuating the smallest part of the waist. This element perhaps heralds the ribbons previously used to lace up corsets while adapting to a contemporary aesthetic. The dress in figure 14 features more sedate colours due to its Winter purpose, yet in the summer brighter textiles with a lower neckline were worn (MET, 2018). While unable to characterise the rich colours of Gucci’s outfit as derived solely from this time, it can be noted that rich colours are present in Spring/ Summer both then and in Gucci’s
collection.
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nother element that can be dated back to the late 17th century is the embellishments. The costume above is embroidered intricately with silver thread, with decorative techniques like this often used for personalising garments and depicting social status (Reinke-Williams, 2011). Gucci has modernised this concept with the use of crystal beading, representing a luxury, higher-class element channelling individuality and power.
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n the period after the Second World War, women who had been subjected to the restrictions of Utility clothing craved femininity and discovered this in the form of Christian Dior’s New Look. Depicted in figure 17, it featured a nipped-in waist and slightly broader shoulder, forming an hourglass silhouette (Gristwood and Eastoe, 2008, pp1920). Again, the top of this look holds distinguishable similarities to the top of Gucci’s SS18 look, exaggerating the female form. This has been updated for SS18 by the exchange a skirt for trousers, highlighting the fashion choices of the 21st century woman where trousers are used not only for practicality but also comfort and trendiness.
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he structured tailoring of this trouser co-ordinate can also be dated back to power dressing (see figure 16), which began in the eighties and followed through to the nineties. Designers Thierry Mugler and Claude Montana were the driving forces behind this trend, inspired by the Amazonian dominatrix, using outsized shoulders, small waists, and simple lines. It began as a way for women
to show power through sexual allure and exaggeration of the female form, but soon translated into power dressing when women adopted a strong, independent attitude everywhere (Gristwood and Eastoe, 2008, p132). Gucci has adapted the power dressing
Figure 13 repeat
trend simply by slimming down the shoulder line to a slightly more natural silhouette, preserving the overall aesthetic. The attitude accompanying the trend also remains in Gucci’s look, with the ensemble radiating confidence and control.
Figure 16: August 1987 Vogue Cover depicting power dressing
Figure 15: Close up of torso, showing beading, bow, and peplum
Figure 17: Dior’s Bar Suit from 1947, modelled by Renee in 1955
Conclusion
Figure 18: Gucci’s Art Lab, where their ideas come together
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he evolution of cut, colour, materials, and technology means that things we view as fashionable nowadays can stem from trends hundreds of years ago. It is evident that Alessandro Michele has used vintage influences to inspire his Spring 2018 and Fall 2017 collections for Gucci, proving how fashion is constantly adapted to suit the current environment. Each look was composed of stronger and weaker vintage-inspired elements, yet each piece had roots in numerous historical periods that directly impacted the look.
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his investigation into historical influences on current fashion collections using Gucci as an example has highlighted how fashion concepts reoccur throughout history, despite the execution of these concepts being updated to harmonise with contemporary society. Whether designers consciously recognise and adopt vintage influences or subconsciously work these into their collections varies, yet it is definitive that all current fashion has been inspired, at least in part, by fashion history.
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References
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Figures
Victoria and Albert Museum. 2018. Victorian Dress at the V&A: Women's clothes 1860s-1890s. [Online]. [Accessed 21/04/18]. Available: www.vam.ac.uk/content/ articles/v/victorian-dress-at-v-and-a/
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