Gucci Fall Winter 2023-24 Fashion Show

After a lackluster men's collection for Fall 2023, Gucci looked back to the Tom Ford era for inspiration for the women's collection, playing it safe compared to the famous hedonist. The first look was a teenie tiny chain mesh GG bra top, worn with a black duchesse satin skirt and opera gloves. It wasn't hard to imagine Victoria De Angelis rocking that on a red carpet. The collection had no shortage of stars, with Dakota Johnson, A$AP Rocky, Beth Ditto, and Julia Garner among the celebrities sitting in the show space on sustainable leather banquettes.

While there wasn't anything particularly new or directional in the collection, it was a smart placeholder until the brand's new creative director Sabato de Sarno begins. Gucci from the '90s and early 2000s has been hot on the vintage market, and the collection brought back memories of Drew Barrymore and Gwyneth Paltrow, bad girls with over-plucked eyebrows in velvet hip-huggers and satin shirts unbuttoned down to there, skimpy sheer tops, and column skirts. Some of the lingerie and fetish wear from back then was also presented, only more carefully.

The collection had a noticeable focus on accessories, with a bounty of kitten heels with Dionysius hardware, fur-lined thong sandals, horse bit chukka boots, and Gucci-branded Moon Boots inspired by the '60s. The more-is-more spirit of the Michele years was also present, with crystal mesh skirts, acid bright faux furs, costume-y feather hats, and rhinestone fringe earrings for the look-at-me set.

On the classic side, the collection had some solid tailoring, including a pale gray calfskin pantsuit that honored the house's leather legacy and a slouchy brown blazer and baggy jeans with lug boots that could have come from Julia Roberts' '90s style file. The house also brought back Ford-era model Amy Wasson, who epitomized the nonchalance of that time period in a trench coat with a new supersized Jackie bag slung over her arm.

Overall, it remains to be seen how all these impulses will coalesce into a way forward for Gucci, but the whole design team came out for the final bow, including some who have been with the house through the generations. While they weren't able to match the heady luxury, raw emotion, or storytelling of the house's creative directors, it was enough for now to keep Maneskin moving to the Gucci music in their front seats.