Buccellati’s Education Push, Dior’s Egyptian Campaign, Sam Edelman’s Palm Beach Pop-up
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NEXT GEN REACH: The jewelry industry is well aware of the importance of passing know-how and artisanal skills down to future generations. Industry association Federorafi recently surveyed the sector and estimated that over the next five years some 3,000 artisans will be lost, equal to about 10 percent of the current workforce.
Milan-based jeweler Buccellati is coming to the rescue, forging ties with the Scuola Orafa Ambrosiana goldsmith school to kick off master courses of 130 hours across four specialties: goldsmithing, chiseling, engraving and microscope stone setting.
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As part of the tie-up, the Compagnie Financière Richemont-owned brand is supporting the school established in 1995 and covering the tuition of the six most talented students enrolled in master courses each semester. Additionally, the company is pledging to hire them in its atelier or alternatively to grant access to other jewelry houses within the Richemont stable, including Cartier and Van Cleef & Arpels.
Touring the Buccellati headquarters in Milan where masters in chiseling and engraving turn flat gold slabs into intricate and lace-like cocktail rings, pendants and cuffs, one can easily understand the importance for the house to preserve its know-how.
Known for its intricately hand-engraved and drilled pieces, oftentimes combining yellow and white gold, the brand founded by Mario Buccellati in 1919 was acquired by Richemont in 2019.
This is not the first time the school and the jeweler are partnering. In 2021, Buccellati established the Engraving Academy at the school, sending its own artisans to teach students that craft. — MARTINO CARRERA
ANCIENT AND MODERN: Dior is prolonging its love affair with Egypt with a campaign shot in front of the pyramids of Giza, where men’s artistic director Kim Jones presented his pre-fall collection in December.
Models Hazem Mohamed Aly, Dara Gueye, Viktor Krohm, Loris Moine and Yang Hao pose in front of the ancient monuments in the campaign lensed by Rafael Pavarotti. Moine kept the peroxide blond wig he wore in the show, a nod to Sting’s character in David Lynch’s 1984 adaptation of “Dune,” the book that inspired much of the collection.
The sci-fi references merged with elements pulled from the Dior women’s archives, including a wool demi-kilt inspired by the bias-pleated skirt of a 1950s dress called Bonne Fortune — a way of tying the collection to founder Christian Dior’s penchant for superstition and love of astrology.
Among the accessories are the Dior Scarab bag, worn crossbody, and the Desert B31 Runner high-top sneakers that resemble moon boots. Helmets and harnesses featuring the brand’s signature cannage motif are made with 3D printing, adding to the futuristic feel of the outfits.
The campaign, set to break on Thursday, was art-directed by Ronnie Cooke Newhouse and styled by Melanie Ward and Ellie Grace Cumming, with an accompanying film directed by Franck Lebon. Peter Philips did the makeup and Guido Palau the hair.
Dior’s show in front of the pyramids set a new bar for destination shows in the post-pandemic period. The French fashion house is hitting the road again this month, with plans to show its women’s pre-fall collection at the Gateway of India monument in Mumbai on March 30. — JOELLE DIDERICH
PALM BEACH BOUND: Sam Edelman has landed in Palm Beach, Florida, with a new pop-up program.
“It’s a wonderful time to have a presence in the Palm Beach area and bring an experience to our customer that embodies the brand’s equestrian heritage and aspirational fashion lifestyle,” Edelman said of the debut of the pop-up at The Colony Hotel.
Running through Sunday, this will be the first of a series of pop-up shops celebrating 15 years of the brand’s signature Gigi sandal and summer 2023 collection, along with a mix of programming.
“It has been an honor to speak to our customer in Wellington at the ultimate equestrian competitions and now to be popping up at The Colony Hotel, which is the epitome of the Palm Beach luxury lifestyle,” he said.
On Friday, the pop-up will be the location for a talk with Sam Edelman’s cofounder, fashion director, and photographer Libby Edelman and The Colony’s artist-in-residence Katy Ferrarone for a guided discussion cohosted by Modern Luxury media, exploring each creative’s work and discuss the positive impact of female creatives in the worlds of art, fashion and design.
Saturday sees the space transform into L’Hotel Gigi Flower Market, led by local Palm Beach floral design team Elspie+Molly. Guests will be able to take home bespoke floral arrangements using elements inspired by Sam Edelman’s latest collection.
The brand will continue to mark the spring-summer collection, hosting pop-ups and brand activations in key warm weather destinations over the course of both seasons. — THOMAS WALLER
GUCCI’S HORSEBIT: Gucci is set on highlighting its signature handbags with dedicated campaigns, relying on a group of friends of the house.
After a campaign released in January that portrayed Dakota Johnson with various renditions of the brand’s Jackie 1961, the Italian luxury house is now zooming in on the Horsebit 1955 handbag, marked by an archival equestrian emblem. The campaign is fronted by Halle Bailey, Hanni and Julia Garner and lensed by Mert Alas and Marcus Piggott.
Bailey, who attended the Gucci fall show in Milan last month, is widely known as one half of the singing duo Chloe x Halle, with her sister Chloe. Halle is gearing up to star as Ariel in Disney’s highly anticipated live-action adaptation of “The Little Mermaid.”
Garner, who also attended Gucci’s women’s show in February, is doing double duty as she also appears in the new Gucci Guilty campaign. She has often made red carpet appearances wearing Gucci, including in January when she was bestowed the Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance as Ruth Langmore in the “Ozark” crime series.
Last year, she won her third Primetime Emmy Award in the Outstanding Supporting Actress category for the same role, wearing a Gucci design with floral embellishments and a diamond-shaped cutout across the midsection.
Hanni was tapped as Gucci’s global brand ambassador in October last year and is a lead singer of the global chart-topping Korean group NewJeans.
Sometimes billed as the next Blackpink, NewJeans is a five-member girl group that released its first single, “Attention,” last year.
The three artists are portrayed against brightly colored backdrops, holding the Horsebit 1955, whose double ring and bar is a variation of the one first introduced on a signature loafer 70 years ago.
These images, similarly to those released to advertise the Jackie 1961 bag, focus on the personality of the three artists and Gucci’s history, carryover signature accessories and craftsmanship, shifting away from the more flamboyant aesthetic of Alessandro Michele, who left his role as creative director of the brand in November. — LUISA ZARGANI
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