Dario giving space for Dario
I don’t have a lot of experience with fashion PR outside of show invitations, and they are most of the time very impersonal. My first interaction with Versace’s was pleasant, very courteous, and it’s not about show invitations but they reached out and told me about ‘Versace Embodied’ and what they wish to achieve ahead of Dario Vitale’s debut. More than the usual business courtesy, I would say, most of the time it’s an email blast, this time, it’s a call. Of course, the brand has a narrative to fulfill; they want to push a story, construct an image to give Vitale a head start, and make sure that I know the ins and outs, so you might be inclined to take it for granted. It’s business after all, right? However, I’d like to think that, after looking into this project (careful, don’t use the ‘C’ word now), their courtesy felt genuine and they went beyond my normal expectations from PRs. Either Dario Vitale did a great job conveying the project to everyone and got everyone on board, or I am encountering very enthusiastic people.
Seeing the different work within ‘Versace Embodied,’ the project that was introduced to me, immediately tells you all you need to know where Vitale wishes to take Versace: away from what we used to know. It’s not crazy for some of us to associate Versace with the ostentatious, and that only. The most obnoxious and conspicuous consumers, perhaps? At least that’s my very outdated view on it, growing up in Hong Kong, Versace is always the brand that tycoons wear, the Medusa is everything, the ‘more tasteful’ double G, even Donatella Versace’s last collection seemed to have signalled nothing but the power of gold. Nothing in ‘Versace Embodied’ was obnoxious, though; quite the opposite, actually, everything was… nostalgic?
This project involves eight artists, Camille Vivier, Andrea Modica, Steven Meisel, Collier Schorr, Bronzi di Riace, Eileen Myles, Olly Elyt, and Stef Mitchell, each artwork was created with the same intention and intensity, but unfortunately and shamefully, I can’t say that Meisel’s old-fashioned shot for Versace’s Istante in 1997 brings the same effect. There are, however, two main works I want to point out: Vivier’s Medusa Polaroid and Elyt’s disco dances, two contrasting vibes that I think sums up where Dario’s headed. A Medusa head that isn’t golden, that isn’t ornamented or seen on decorated fabrics, a Medusa that is rather dull but not lifeless. A quick glance at Vivier’s work reveals that she focuses on the drama of the subject. For the Polaroid, Vivier deliberately chose the Medusa head on the main door of the original Versace’s Atelier in Milan, a silvery metallic counterpart to what we’re used to seeing. For a Versace seamstress working at the atelier, that’s who they see every day before they work with the golden symbol of wealth. It has never looked more stoic, but perhaps ‘tranquil’ is a better word. Medusa had time to breathe, so did Vitale, or at least he is trying to create room for himself to breathe, to think straight, in order to fill the shoes of Donatella Versace. Elyt’s retro dance video counterbalanced Vivier’s Medusa very well, it’s lively, together, and vibrant. Even the color scheme is the exact opposite, purple and yellow dazzled the disco ball room, and everyone is Northern Soul dancing in unison. There is order in chaos, echoed by each art piece in this initiative, like the Medusa head, Myles’ poem, Riace’s candid photo in 1981 of visitors appreciating a bronze statue, each work of art come together to help carve a different road for Dario, also to pave the wave for us to understand what is ahead of us, that is a sense of calmness.
Julia Roberts’ recently was seen wearing one of Dario Vitale’s latest creation, while the Internet was frenzying and enraged over the sentiment of ‘is this even Versace?’ the real question is, is the seriousness seen on Roberts’ ensemble, the juxstaposition of the widely associated Versace image, the peak or the bottomline of how reserved things may be in his debut and collections in the near future? ‘I like the dress,’ ‘I don’t like the dress’ are fleeting comments, it makes no difference if my input is heard here, but for what it’s worth, I didn’t like it, but I didn’t mind it. It’s a Harlequin dress, there really isn’t much to speak on. What I want you to really think about is, now that you’ve seen this series of artwork that Vitale strategically launched before his debut, combined with your preexisting thoughts on what Julia Roberts wore, just how different things are going to be? How dialled back would it be? How will Vitale show us fun in the foundation of stillness that he so eagerly tries to convey with ‘Versace Embodied?’
I look forward to his debut tomorrow night.
update: What a comical move once again by a fashion house. Right after news broke that the Prada Group had purchased Versace, Dario Vitale stepped down. Oh well, my enthusiasm for Dario Vitale's future at Versace was forced to come to a permanent halt. DAMN!