On the 100th anniversary of the brand, Gucci Garden Archetypes delves into the multifarious inspirations from the music, art, travel and pop culture spheres that resonate through Gucci’s campaigns and reflect the inclusive philosophy, liberated and audacious of Creative Director Alessandro Michele. During the course of this kaleidoscopic exploration that we meet the mythical figures that sprinkle Gucci’s vision: intergalactic explorers, horses, dancers, angels, and aliens. The design studio Archivio Personale creates immersive worlds and transforms Alessandro Michele’s vision into narrative spaces reflecting and enhancing the uniqueness of his aesthetics. Accessed via what appears to be a behind-the-scenes operations center, visitors first get a split-screen live view of the exhibition they are about to enter.
I thought it was interesting to accompany people in these first six years of adventure, inviting them to cross the imaginary, the narrative, the unexpected, the glitter. So, I created a playground of emotions that are the same as in the campaigns, because they are the most explicit journey into my imagery.
Once inside through a network of themed spaces and corridors, 15 Gucci campaigns come to life. In the Gucci Beauty’s room, we are dazzled from multiple angles by the now-famous smile belonging to punk singer Dani Miller that has overthrown beauty conventions in the cosmetic industry. In the meantime who enters the scented floral paradise of Gucci Bloom discovers a hidden imaginary garden that becomes a place of freedom. In another room, a circular projection creates the immersive sensation of being out ‘on the floor’ with the exuberant Northern Soul dancers of Pre-Fall 2017. So, you just need to get to Florence to find yourself in the 80s nightclub bathroom of the Berlin-set Spring Summer 2016 campaign, or behind the scenes in the sprawling modernist villa that hosted the Cruise 2020 campaign ‘party of the century’. Anyhow, coherently with Gucci’s explorations of the digital realms, a virtual tour will also be available online, giving the possibility to visit the exhibition for two weeks starting from May 17th.
