Dolce & Gabbana: The Opulent Spirit

Dubai was the center of the fashion world for one night. Dolce & Gabbana headlined the event with its first fashion show inside the Dubai Mall where the brand’s boutique was inaugurated in March. This store features three levels designed by architect Marco Costanzi from MCA, who interpreted the brand’s signature style and the dreamy atmospheres and warm colors of the Middle East, showcasing the world of Dolce & Gabbana in all of its facets, with women’s, men’s, children’s, accessories, and beauty collections along with tailoring services. This first fashion show in the Emirates was certainly the hot ticket of the fashion season in Dubai. This was a special moment bringing together an Italian aesthetic with the seduc- tion of the Gulf, making for a special event and a show with 128 di erent looks, about half of which were designed speci cally to be sold in the boutique. «For four years now, we have been going around the world to present our ‘DNA’ each time», explained designers Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana.

For the show’s soundtrack, they chose pieces from famous opera composers like Bellini, Rossini, Puccini and Mascagni. «We don’t want to colonize anyone. It’s simply about getting in touch with other cultures, exchanging ideas, and learning.» With a magical encounter between East and West, Fashion Avenue Expansion was transformed into a stage for the queens and princess of Dolce & Gabbana. From the first piece seen on the catwalk—the black evening dress with embroidered abaya—it was clear that this show as about beauty and style that know no bounds. An especially glamorous show where a feminine aesthetic is alternated with contemporary menswear, including luxurious tuxedos and more casual pieces. «It’s a meeting by day and by night, where long dresses and tuxedos prevail. There is a baroque and opulent spirit. A similar taste to that of our southern Italy. Brocades, embroideries, crystals... Maybe because in Sicily there was a historical Arab presence,» say the duo, «We wanted to officially open our large boutique in the Dubai Mall, which opened in March. This is a key city for the entire Middle East. We came here for the first time thirteen years ago. And back then it was a very different place. When we are in the Middle East we don’t feel like foreigners. We like kayaking, rich make-up, perfumes. For this region we've produced two special fragrances, and also a special campaign. We believe that women have the same dreams all over the world. They want to feel like queens or princesses. And in fact in the show we covered them with crowns and tiaras of gems or flowers.» Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana got a royal welcome from six-hundred guests, including personalities like the princess of Bahrain, Dana Al Khalifa, who walked the S/S 19 fashion runways for the brand, artist Rhea Jacobs, designer Saufeeya Goodson, influencers Karen Wazen, Ola Farahat, and Fatima Almomen, blogger and business- woman Farhana Bodi, and model Natalia Kapchuk. This initiative is part of a wider journey, a sort of fashion world tour, with the brand featured as part of special events in cities like Tokyo, Hong Kong, Shanghai, New York and Mexico City. «Certainly! We started about four years ago. These trips are a way to enrich our vision. A real encounter between cultures. That’s why about half of the items in the collection are one-o pieces, which will remain exclusively in the Dubai Mall boutique. We are lucky to have customers who travel and want to find different things and atmospheres in the many destinations they touch,» added the designers. Baroque atmospheres, Italian savoir faire, and that magic that can only be found in the Middle East. This was the perfect backdrop for an event to remember, that was attended by select few with a dinner organized on the 36th oor of the Burj Khalifa building. ◆