There are ghosts in the Gucci archives.
A tour of a 15th-century palace on the left bank of the Arno River in Florence, Italy, revealed that the ghost was believed to be Guccio Gucci, the house’s founder. Strange noises have been reported coming from unoccupied rooms within the building.
Certainly, this site has a story to tell. The former Gucci factory and workshop now houses key pieces from the house’s 103-year history, including Guccio Gucci’s Horsebit loafers, artist Vittorio Accornello’s Flora painting, Tom Ford’s red velvet suit and Alessandro Michele’s Dionysus bag. Crafts are stored here. Taken together, you get a picture of a world-famous luxury brand.
Now, 41-year-old Sabato de Sarno is at the helm, tasked with writing Gucci’s next chapter, and he’s been in the demanding job for a year now. We met in a high-ceilinged, wood-panelled room that looked like a library, with bookshelves filled with bags instead of rare books. Wall-to-wall glass cases display some of the most famous and recognizable works of all time, including Jackie, Bamboo 1947 and Blondie. “It’s amazing,” De Sarno says excitedly as he looks around the room, remembering history and history. Point out the intricacies of some of his favorites. “This is a magical place,” he says. “All of these pieces represent different moments in Gucci. It’s not just a piece of leather or a garment or a brand, it’s a story, and I want to keep telling this story.”
De Sarno wears the standard uniform of a boxy black T-shirt with no logo, black jeans and sneakers. “If you see me wearing a white T-shirt, that’s a really bad day,” he told me. “When I want to brighten up my mood, I wear white. I use clothes as a language. But I’m a very positive person, so most days I wear all black.”
In less than two weeks, De Sarno will present his spring/summer 2025 collection at La Triennale, Milan’s art and design museum, and he also held a show for his latest menswear in June. But even if last-minute details are weighing on him, he doesn’t show it. “A lot has happened in the last year and a half, most of it really beautiful, and most of it was new to me. It was my first year,” he says. “But this is the second time, right? I feel more relaxed.”
Gucci’s rich history over the past century has been punctuated by culture-shaping moments, images and looks. Guccio Gucci’s first business was luggage, and the company was founded in 1921 as a retailer of handmade leather trunks and bags. By mid-century, Gucci came to signify a kind of cosmopolitan luxury, with the introduction of horsebits and botanical motifs, and notable fans like Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis. By the 1990s, Gucci’s ready-to-wear designer Tom Ford had transformed the brand into one of fashion’s most influential forces, with a bold and sensual allure. More recently, Alessandro Michele’s Magpie Maximalism brand captured the zeitgeist of a different era.
Through his six collections to date, De Sarno has envisioned a new vision for Gucci, built around strong, wearable fundamentals. An exquisitely tailored coat. Clothing made with sophisticated monochrome and soft, delicate patterns. Accessories with unexpected details. Silhouettes made for life and movement.
De Sarno’s version of Gucci, which followed Michele, may seem understated, almost restrained. But his approach is intuitive, a concept that has a huge influence on fashion today. While people are fed up with overly commercialized ideas, personal style is an illusion, and that’s exactly the drum he’s beating at Gucci.
Guccio Gucci was an ambitious storyteller. He was born into a poor family, but as his business grew, he developed a story of a more dignified, equestrian-loving Gucci family. An early iteration of Gucci’s logo was a knight flanked by roses and wheels. It was cut from the coat of arms of another, more noble Gucci family, but Guccio adopted it as his own. This is the story De Sarno gravitates towards as he crafts his own chapter.
“After a year, I think I’ve worked hard, but there’s a lot of me in the new GUCCI.”
De Sarno grew up in a close-knit family in Ciciano, a town near Naples, and now lives in both Milan and Brussels. His husband, Daniele Calisti, is a lawyer and has two dogs named Luce and Pina. In person, he is intimidating yet refreshingly unassuming, so much so that Gucci released a short documentary this spring called “Who is Sabato de Sarno?” The narration is by actor Paul Mescal. Before joining Gucci, De Sarno spent 20 years working behind the scenes at Prada, Dolce & Gabbana, and Valentino. This straightforwardly titled mini-doc is part storytelling and approach to dealing with the scrutiny that comes with landing a top job at a major luxury house, and reflects De Sarno’s sensibilities as a designer. are. Clear.
“I think there’s a lot of me in the new Gucci because of all the hard work I’ve put in over the past year,” De Sarno says. “I think about it step by step, season by season, collection by collection. I love building by rooms. Every collection is a room, and right now I have six rooms.”
He has focused on and refined practical details and manufacturing, such as durable soft leather on accessories and oversized cocooned finishes on coats. He has played with decorations, but never in a way that feels forced or overdone. Crystal tank tops and dresses are styled with jeans. The beaded fringe dress, which looks like a lightweight slip, is worn with ankle socks and Gucci horsebit loafers. The loafers became De Sarno’s signature remix from the archives (he introduced a pair of platforms in his first collection and they were an instant hit). The version of Jackie and Bamboo’s bag is similar, he is artfully decorated with crystals and scaled down. Finished in neon colors (to match the tank). Special attention is also paid to color. De Sarno introduced a strong cow’s blood called Rosso Ancora, which became emblematic of the Sabbath era. (Ancora means “again” in Italian.)
“I don’t want you to wear Gucci, I want to see you wear Gucci.”
“The new Gucci Sabbath is a little more clean and minimal,” says Miley Cyrus, who wore a custom sequined Gucci dress to this year’s Grammys. “I have a lot to say and I have a lot of personality, so when my clothes say so much, sometimes I don’t have the space to express myself,” she says emphatically. . De Sarno’s clothes give her that space. “I can express myself without drowning in other people’s creations, if that makes sense.”
De Sarno says that’s one of his goals as a designer. “I don’t want you to cover me. We want to meet you,” he explains. “I don’t want you to wear Gucci, I want to see you wear Gucci. I don’t want the clothes I make to be mine. I want them to be Gucci. I don’t want people to wear my clothes. When I choose, I want them to wear it, because for me it’s important to have something that has life.”
De Sarno’s ethos as a designer is also expressed in the way he builds the world around his vision and the people he chooses to represent this era of Gucci. This includes hiring model Daria Warbowy, who has just completed a nearly 10-year sabbatical, to front its first campaign, shot by David Sims. Riccardo Zanola, the artistic director who works with De Sarno, said: “The first campaign with Dahlia reflects the ultimate message he is trying to convey: the intimacy that symbolizes Gucci and its heritage, and the sense of self. “It encapsulated confidence in sensuality.” ”
De Sarno draws inspiration and visual codes from anywhere and everywhere. One scroll through his personal Instagram reveals a kaleidoscope of interests. A photo of Jackie O from the 1970s. Painting by George Condo at the d’Este Foundation in Athens. Fragments of poetry. The merry-go-round begins with a quote from author and playwright Samuel Beckett, followed by a black-and-white photo of Beckett wearing a Gucci bag. (Following images of De Sarno’s sleek new version of that bag, the Gucci B.)
His Cruise 2025 collection, for example, featured a campaign starring Blondie singer Debbie Harry and shot by Nan Goldin, an artist he admires. “Her aesthetic always inspires me,” De Sarno says. “I love her process, the way she captures sensuality, sex, and eclectic moods, and the way she photographs people’s intimate moments. And I love Debbie and her music, and her stories. There’s always more to it than the fact that someone is famous.” He added his own touches to the Blondie bag, like its slightly boxy shape and crisp color scheme. Added new version.
The collection embraced a more emotive side with dainty pleated gowns and billowing blouses. And for Spring/Summer 2025, there were playful moments in the reimagining of classic pieces. Slouchy jeans and pants were paired with a white tank top with green and red striped grosgrain ribbon trim, accessorized with oversized sunglasses and a headscarf. There was also a tulip-shaped miniskirt suit with Lucite heels. The algorithmically appealing look felt like it was designed with Instagram and TikTok in mind.
In addition to his show at La Triennale, De Sarno presented his Cruise 2025 collection at London’s Tate Modern Art Gallery. He says he does his best thinking while walking around museums, and it’s not just because of the art. “When we travel, the first thing my husband and I do is look for exhibits in museums,” he says.
“I always find something to learn. It’s the perfect combination of new and old. I love that everyone in a museum is the same. There’s no hierarchy between people. Art that matters But I also get to see the little kids’ art together. I love this idea of sharing it with everyone.”
De Sarno always reserves front row sections at his shows for his nearest and dearest. A photo of him kissing his mother while attending the Cruise 2025 show has gone viral among fashion lovers. Followers and fans shared clips of him dancing backstage. But pressure, whether imagined or real, is very tangible in today’s fashion.
These days, designers at global luxury brands don’t have much time to establish themselves or achieve commercial success. This is the reality of the fashion business. But De Sarno tries to keep himself in a place where he feels inspired. “Creativity is real and personal,” he says. “It’s about my choices, my sensibilities. It’s about my experiences. It’s also about the moment I live in,” he explains. “In important moments like this, especially the first show at Gucci, there was a lot of pressure, so I was trying to change the mood. That’s part of the job, but I danced and sang and tried to make myself feel better in the moment. If we can make it better, there’s no reason not to.”
De Sarno paused to look through the surrounding archives and said he wanted people, especially young people interested in fashion, to have the same experience he had, so he decided to open the building to the public. He said he is trying to persuade the company. visit.
I spoke to De Sarno about a theory passed down along the way that the ghost of Guccio Gucci is haunting the archives. “Well, really?” he said with a raised eyebrow and a smile. “If I say something he doesn’t like, he might come in and interrupt us,” De Sarno said with a gentle laugh.
“Everything in the archive tells something different. It’s a story,” explains the designer. “And I hope there’s a part of my story here too.”
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