Italian fashion house Versace took over Cannes to present its cruise 2023 collection co-designed with singer Dua Lipa featuring heritage butterfly prints, pastel hues and house codes from the ‘90s.
Swati Bhat
Image: Versace; ‘La Vacanza’ co-designed by Donatella Versace and Dua Lipa
The high summer collection entitled ‘La Vacanza’ showcased Donatella Versace’s and Dua Lipa’s shared vision of an elegant Italian vacation, presenting a full Versace lifestyle offering, from evening gowns and tailoring to bikinis, terry cotton beachwear and handbags.
The inspiration for the collaboration was a celebration of summer, explains Donatella Versace in the show notes, as well as honouring and reworking key Versace codes, such as the iconic butterfly and ladybug print from Versace’s spring/summer 1995 collection and the mesh outfits and embellishments of the ‘90s Supermodel era, and the “young people who love fashion and music.”
Commenting on the design process and inspiration, Dua Lipa said: “Donatella and I bonded over our shared love of this time of year while making this collection. Digging through the archives we discovered we were drawn to a lot of the same references which was such an inspiring and fulfilling process.
“La Vacanza ranges from metallic miniskirts and sexy bikinis, to butterfly rings and printed pieces inspired by the Versace SS ’95 collection. There’s always an occasion to wear Versace, and I know I’ll be spending my days (and nights!) in La Vacanza all summer long.”
Versace presents ‘La Vacanza’ co-designed by Donatella Versace and Dua Lipa
This translated into a collection featuring pastel hued buckled bralettes and dresses inspired by the Versace autumn/winter 1992 collection, alongside silk twill printed shirts, tailored jackets and wide-trousers, and twisted and knotted jersey inspired by the spring-summer 1995 Atelier Versace collection.
The collection also includes a fresh take on prints, with Versace and Lipa mixing the archival butterfly print with polka dots in a nostalgic throwback to the 90s, as well as archival ‘Nastro Gianni’ bands at the bust of dresses, inspired by the SS03 collection, and the Medusa hardware from 1995 has been reworked on hardware, belts and jewellery.
Key accessories have also been highlighted in laminated metallic leather, including the mini Repeat hobo bag, stack loafers, and boots.
Donatella Versace added: “I love the summer and for me, this collection celebrates the very best of that time of year. Gorgeous colours, fun prints, and light silhouettes. This is the perfect summer collection—from lying by the pool in a fun printed bikini to dressing up to dance on hot summer evenings in the perfect evening dress—these clothes immediately make me think of my holidays and being in the sun.
“Dua loves Fashion, I love music—we are the perfect duo! We had such a good time designing this collection together. We felt like we were on vacation and that is exactly the spirit we want people to feel when they wear our clothes.”
Like with an album release, Versace has released ‘La Vacanza’ as a ‘see-now-buy-now’ collection, with the co-designed line available at Versace boutiques and online at Versace.com. In addition, Versace will open a series of pop-ups, bespoke in-store displays, and temporary retail locations in cities such as Bangkok, Chengdu, Hong Kong, Seoul, and Shanghai, and world-famous vacation destinations, including Forte dei Marmi and Mykonos.
