"From the Heart to the Hands: Dolce & Gabbana" at ICA Miami

"Handmade" gallery

To say I'm not a fashionista would be a vast understatement. My preferred clothing choice has grown to be jeans and a t-shirt. Still,  I'm always excited to see a good fashion exhibit. The Dolce & Gabbano exhibit now on at ICA Miami is that and much more. It is a stunning look at the contributions of these designers to the world of haute couture.

The exhibit spans 13 immersive rooms, each with a different theme. The gowns and other clothing in this image are from the "Handmade" gallery. The detail in these works  --  created in collaboration with Italian artisans -- is mindboggling. It's not hard to imagine a weathered Italian seamstress bent over one of these gowns with needle and thread in hand.

The description of the attire was as over-the-top as the fashion. Take, for instance, what the wall card had to say about the works in this section. "Each collaboration represents a stop in Dolce & Gabbana's 'Grand Tour' of the peninsula: a contemporary journey reminiscent of that taken by young European nobles in the 18th century who came to Italy in search of its artistic and scenic treasures." Lofty language indeed. It would be interesting to dig into the historical significance of the designs and the materials, often hand-painted silks embellished with elaborate embroidery. No such knowledge was required, though, to appreciate their beauty. 

By Anh Duong

Each room had a unique design that complemented the fashion in some way. The "Handmade" gallery featured the artwork of Anh Duong, a French artist, actress and model known for her self-portraits. As a model who "walked" in the very first Dolce and Gabbano runway show, Duong was the perfect choice to participate in this exhibit. I was as captivated by her works as by the couture. 

In this painting, Duong has recreated Manet's "Luncheon on the Grass," although not altogether faithfully. Gabbana has taken the place of the gentleman resting on one arm. His hand is outstretched to Duong, perhaps in appreciation of her unclothed beauty (a bit ironic for a fashion exhibit). A top-hatted Dolce sits by Duong's side and joins her in gazing at the viewer. The gentlemen are decked out to the nines, presumably in clothing they designed. I love it. If you do too, you can click here to see more of Duong's work. Now back to the exhibit proper. 

Menswear got plenty of attention in the show. You might expect that the men's clothing would be a bit more subtle than the designs to be worn by women. You would be wrong. As you can see here, the jackets to be worn by men about town are just as creatively adorned. Not surprisingly, I was drawn to the jackets featuring reproductions of famous works of art. Take, for instance, this sampling from the Alta Sartoria Milano Collection seen on the runway in 2020. (Note: The "runway" in this case was at the Pinocoteca Milano, a museum known for its Renaissance art collection. For a video of that introduction to this collection, click here. I am gobsmacked.) 

Renaissance art is not exactly in my wheelhouse, but the painting on this jacket rang some distant bells. Ah, yes, it's Leonardo's adrogynous "Saint John the Baptist" from 1513-1516. My question, of course, is why this work and other Renaissance paintings made their way onto D&G couture. There's much commentary on this, but Flavia Lefebrvre D'Ovidio, an Old Masters painting specialist at Christie's London, perhaps summed it up best. "[These works] pay homage to the past whilst transmitting a sense of glamour, richness and opulence." I find the fact that someone from Christie's is commenting on these works fascinating. For more on this aspect of these designs -- and some great photos from the runway -- click here. 

I'll leave you with some garments with yet another feel. The Alta Sartoria and Alta Moda collections featuring the couture shown here debuted on a runway at the Archeological Park of Nora in Sardinia. Click here to see a video of what that show looked like. The setting is another huge "wow" and features the models walking through "Nora Mirage," a site-specific installation by light artist Phillip K. Smith that was commissioned for the show. 

The clothing is, well, interesting. As is apparently typical for D&G, they chose the setting for the introduction of this line before designing the clothing. The wall card relating to this section of the exhibit talks about the "ancestral magic" of Sardinia with its prehistoric art, archaeological remains and folk rituals, all of which are incorporated into the stories behind this line of couture. 

I was particularly interested in the coat the male figure is wearing and learned that it evokes the mastruca. Happily, the wall card went on to explain. "[The] mastruca is the traditional...wool cloak once worn by shepherds and still worn today during the ritual of the Mamuthones, masked figures who parade through the Mamoiada carnival. This danced procession...stages the eternal tension between good and evil, between winter and summer." Holy moly. 

"From the Heart to the Hands: Dolce & Gabbana" continues at ICA Miami through June 14th. It is a knock out show for both fashion and art lovers. Don't miss it if you're in the area. For more information, click here. And to see more of the exhibit, click here.