Not your mother’s Versace
Oh, the Medusa head medallion-clutching at Versace ss26!
It was the most polarising Fashion Month debut so far and I get it. But in a way, polarising is good.
Let’s break it down.
After a few very campy Instagram teasers, the show itself (the first from new creative director Dario Vitale) was a much younger, messier, some say Miu Miu-coded affair. There were – to my eyes – unflattering leather tailored pants (tightly belted to accentuate the excess of fabric around the crotch), a pile-on of badly cut 80s suiting, bizarre boxy waistcoats, Marilyn-esque screen prints, unsightly tucked-in knits, frumpy floopy dresses and a mish mash of accessories.
The sexy Donatella-era glamour was nowhere to be seen, replaced by a chaotically-styled, gen-Z appealing thrift explosion. My first reaction: where was the stylist? Did they have a stroke at the first sight of the collection? In fact, no the stylist was a young gun, known more for celeb styling and ‘character-based’ editorials, which explains a lot.
While the editors at the show enthused about the eclectic looks and dynamic energy in the room, the issue from my vantage point was the bulky silhouettes and lack of finesse. Awkward styling as a concept I understand, but for a brand pitched as luxury, this didn’t translate. In the hands of Joe McKenna I think I’d have loved it, the contrast of high youth, tacky eighties with a level of polish could have put this (for me) in the same league as Michael Rider’s Celine.
But. I don’t think Vitali wanted that. Perhaps a polarising reaction is actually a smart strategy when you’re aiming for a reset. Thinking back to Alessandro Michele’s Gucci debut, there was a similar outcry of “the Gucci customer will hate it”. What actually happened? The cool kids adored it for being radically different, championed it and made it desirable. Admittedly, there was a tighter level of editing in the early days, whereas here Vitali didn’t seem to know when to turn off the tap.
Aesthetically it’s a hot mess, but an intentional one, and importantly it’s a point of view. In the current climate of too many brands, every brand really needs to define their vibe and own it. And in that regard, the customer will come.
I’d love a showroom re-see. Broken down and merchandised well, there are some strong pieces that align with other 80s-flavoured looks we’ve been seeing. Coloured jeans, exaggerated leather blousons, unapologetic statement bumbags, boxy denim jackets, T-shirt tops with the sides spliced away to nothing. Oh and my fave – the deco-style cigarette case belt buckles and pendants. (Consider it the new Medusa head!) These pieces are both editorial yet commercial, you can picture them on a Dazed cover, in celebrity street style TikToks, in the clubs of Croatia and on the high streets of Europe, America and Asia. Conclusion: perhaps we just need time for the eyes to adjust to a whole different new-gen take on Versace.
WORDS: Disneyrollergirl / Navaz Batliwalla
IMAGES: Versace SS26
NOTE: Most images are digitally enhanced. Some posts use affiliate links and PR samples. Please read my privacy and cookies policy here
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