Fantasy plays a big role in fashion, and Alessandro Michele knows it well. After taking us to outer space, to Dario Argento’s films locations, and to bizarre collectors’ homes (among many others), he’s now saving us from a Great Flood – in the most fashionable way possible, of course. For the Cruise 2019 campaign, shot by Glen Luchford, the Italian creative director introduces us to a rural community and the many animals surrounding its members, all of which have to seek shelter in a recreation of Noah’s ark. Already excited? Get on board!
Perhaps, it was this year’s Met Museum’s major exhibition, Heavenly Bodies: Fashion and the Catholic Imagination, that inspired Alessandro to recreate a Biblical passage for one of his campaigns. Perhaps, he really saw Jesus and the Virgin Mary in Jared Leto and Lana del Rey when heading to the buzzy Met gala earlier in May. Perhaps, he just feels like the world is in turmoil and thinks God will send a Great Flood soon. Perhaps, he just wanted to create a fantastical world where we can forget our concerns and focus on how fun it would be to survive surrounded by friends, sheep, parrots, goats, monkeys, elephants, and racoons. The motivations behind his religiously-inspired campaign are uncertain, but one thing is clear: Michele is still one of our favourite designers right now and we couldn’t thank him more for reshaping what fashion means nowadays.
