In 2012, the Italian designer duo Dolce & Gabbana released a spectacular haute-couture event for a select group in Taormina, Sicily, and the fashion world has never been the same. Six years and several million dollars of production time and money went into the staging of the first-ever Alta Moda presentation, and ten years later the event has grown to epic proportions.
- Dolce & Gabbana’s 2012 Alta Moda Event
- The First Ever Alta Moda Event
- The Incredible Clothes
- Rooted in Luxury
- Dolce & Gabbana’s 2022 Event
Featured photo credit: Sonse. License under: Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic
Disclosure: Sponsored
Dolce & Gabbana’s 2012 Alta Moda Event
The term “alta moda” literally means “high fashion,” and the production staged by Dolce & Gabbana is decidedly that. The debut of their collection included around 80 A-list guests, including Stephanie Seymour and Scarlett Johansson, with the intent to woo them with luxurious fabrics and fantastical designs interwoven with divine entertainment.
The First Ever Alta Moda Event
The program began on a sweltering July Sunday in the ancient Roman amphitheater with a launch of the Bel Canto opera Norma by Bellini. Later that evening, guests enjoyed a night of dancing, fireworks, and a 30-foot table of delectable treats.
The Incredible Clothes
The display of the 73-piece Alta Moda collection took place at the old San Domenico monastery on Monday. Highly influenced by Sicilian style, the collection broke away from the traditional look of Parisian couture. It focused on the dripping excess of the Baroque period. Scores of seamstresses had worked overtime in the Milan shops for months to hand-craft, hand-stitch, or hand-paint every piece.
Stefano Gabbana stated that the point of the duo’s initial couture collection was not to do “new, new, new,” but rather to “craft something beautiful, special, and unique.” The pieces were one-of-a-kind, offered to guests of the show on a first-come, first-served basis. Read who’s wearing DG.
Rooted in Luxury
Customers of the first Dolce & Gabbana Alta Moda collection were enticed with the promise of exclusivity and a level of secrecy that accompanied the original wearable works of art. The Italian designers had no interest in making a huge profit from this clothing line. Instead, they sought the freedom to create art that people would admired and covet. While it was not a quick process from order to delivery, the luxurious hand-crafted results were well worth the wait.
Dolce & Gabbana’s 2022 Event
Ten years later, Dolce & Gabbana is continuing the Alta Moda tradition, and the event continues to grow. Dame Judy Dench, Sharon Stone, Mariah Carey, and Drew Barrymore were among the celebrities photographed at the 2022 event. The four-day extravaganza celebrated ten years of high fashion. In ten years, the original guest list of 80 has grown significantly to 750 clients from all over the world, including fashion-conscious actors, directors, producers, and otherwise rich and famous from all walks of life.
The final event of this year’s production took place in a 13th-century Sicilian castle. There a DJ played and tables were laden with Italian treats, from cannoli to gelato. The final underlined the Alta Moda luxury lifestyle brand.
While the venue and individual pieces showcased by the Dolce & Gabbana Alta Moda collection may have changed a bit over the last decade, the overwhelming feelings of opulence and luxury certainly have not. We can’t wait to see what lies ahead for Alta Moda over the next ten years.
© 2013-2022 Nicole Mölders | All rights reserved
