Gucci Reinvents the Text Message
Everyone’s talking about Gucci. Now Gucci is texting back.
The brand was resurrected by designer Alessandro Michele last year, and since then its pink fur clogs and panther-print sweaters have dominated both street-style photos and celebrity closets. (We get it, Jared Leto — you really like an embroidered floral bomber jacket.)
Today on the catwalk, models with one-word names like Regan and Marjan stormed through a thick haze of red smoke to declare Michele’s new vision. And though the designer is notoriously tight-lipped with the press, he did say two words loud and clear: “Modern Future.”
The phrase was embroidered in a Yeezy-esque gothic font on outerwear and cocktail skirts, and even painted on a male model’s T-zone. What gives?
"It’s the influence of the social media era, for sure,” says Nicole Phelps, Vogue.com’s fashion director. “Everyone wants signature words and slogans to help declare who they are. It’s the hashtag effect. But Alessandro is very gifted and very forward-thinking, so when he uses those elements in his design, it’s not just smart for branding—there’s also a kind of magic in how he goes about it. It’s like the words are part of a spell that’s woven into the clothes.”
The other oft-repeated word, “Loved,” as stamped on accessories like fans and jewelry. “Some people might say that ‘love’ or 'loved’ is a little cliché; that it’s overused and it’s lost its meaning. But look at the world around us,” Phelps said with a shrug. “How can anyone say we need to be less loved? If Gucci wants to make us feel that way, I think that’s a beautiful thing.”
Also a beautiful thing: You can make your own “Loved” and “Modern Future” hoodies with an American Apparel sweatshirt and some iron-on gothic font letters from Michael’s. Go to it, Gucci gang.
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