Naomi Campbell, Elton John & A$AP Rocky Rally In Rome For Gucci’s Cruise 2020 Show

From a visit to Rome institution Antica Libreria Cascianelli to the Gucci Cruise 2020 presentation in the Capitoline Museums overlooking the Forum, and the after-party at Palazzo Brancaccio, where Stevie Nicks and Harry Styles duetted, Alessandro Michele’s Resort programme gave guests a tour of his home city. Among the friends of the house in attendance were Vogue editor-in-chief Edward Enninful and contributing editor Naomi Campbell, Elton John and David Furnish, A$AP Rocky, Zoe Saldana and Marco Perego, and Mariacarla Boscono and Ghali.

“All the beautiful things surrounding us here from the pagan world are connected to a freedom that has sometimes been threatened,” Michele told Vogue of the treasures surrounding the fashion, music and art crowd in the archaeological institution he has been visiting since he was a child. “It was really important to organise this show in Rome in a time when it’s important to glorify this place: a place of freedom.”

The cross-cultural references embedded in the Cruise collection were no less decade-spanning. From Ancient Roman tunics and togas to Vatican-esque nun’s habits, Mickey Mouse motifs and pieces adorned with the slogan “My body, my choice” or the date “May 22 1978” (when abortion was legalised in Italy), the catwalk was a sensory overload of political points of view, as well as covetable clothing.

“Through fashion, I found freedom,” Michele continued. “It’s important to say things because dressing is about using your freedom of expression.” As his Gucci journey continues and Michele gives greater insights into his personal creative process as well as the brand’s, his loyal cohort of followers has remained the same. From John in his tasselled blazer to Rakim Mayers (A$AP Rocky), who wore animal-printed denim with socks and slides, and Styles, who avoided pre-show photographs, the Gucci family is as eclectic as the man behind it. You get the sense that Michele wouldn’t have it any other way.