Gucci's Fall 2024 Campaign Prompts AOC's Research Into Lobotomies for Women

Gucci's Fall 2024 Campaign Prompts AOC's Research Into Lobotomies for Women

AOC has searched for days to find something positive about Gucci’s Fall 2024 Campaign [IG] with models Alaato Jazyper, Jiahui Zhang and Loli Bahia. Riccardo Zanola acts as artistic director in images styled by Alasdair McKimm and lensed by David Sims [IG]. / Hair by Duffy; makeup by Lucia Pieroni

Gucci Creative Director Sabato De Sarno sits atop this campaign, as he methodically and slowly ponders his way out of the red-ink mess that is today’s Gucci brand.

Global luxury brands Gucci and Burberry are vying for first place in this sea of red ink. Gucci — with its strong, leather-goods business — should not be in the same car-wreck pileup that includes Burberry, who does not have iconic handbags.

Not only has the Fall 2024 Campaign prompted AOC to investigate the history of brain lobotomies as a medical treatment for women disproportionally. Anne’s very high-grade, brain wiring just recalled the extreme degree of misogyny in the Italian Futurist movement, launched in 1909 by the Italian poet Filippo Tommaso Marinetti. Read our insights on this subject.

When professionals cut open a luxury brand patient with a big heart and leave it bleeding profusely on the operating table for nearly two years, death is a real possibility.

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'Edie & Iselin' in Moto Style for Harper's Bazaar France March 2024 by David Sims

'Edie & Iselin' in Moto Style for Harper's Bazaar France March 2024 by David Sims

British top model Edie Campbell and Norwegian model Iselin Steiro come together in the March 2024 issue of Harper’s Bazaar France [IG].

In a trademark Emmanuelle Alt edit, the former EIC of Vogue France styles the duo in her own personal style. The black leather jacket is a must-have in every French woman’s closet.

Photographer David Sims [IG] is behind the lens at Arlington Road Studio in London.

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Sabato De Sarno’s Gucci Ancora Campaign Lensed by David Sims

Sabato De Sarno’s Gucci Ancora Campaign Lensed by David Sims

Gucci Ancora is creative director Sabato De Sarno’s ad campaign for his debut Gucci collection. The director’s choice of the word Ancora is an Italian terms that translates “again” in English.

Gucci Ancora is creative director Sabato De Sarno’s ad campaign for his debut Gucci collection. The director’s choice of the word Ancora is an Italian terms that translates “again” in English.

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Daria Werbowy Plunges Into Gucci's Marina Chain Campaign Lensed by David Sims

Daria Werbowy Plunges Into Gucci's Marina Chain Campaign Lensed by David Sims

Canadian-Ukrainian fashion model goddess Daria Werbowy has been sorely missed since she left fashion modeling in 2016.

Daria is set to return to fashion world — on her terms and ONLY on her terms. Phoebe Philo’s eponymous new label, due to launch in September but not with a runway show, delivers a long-anticipated re-pairing of artist and muse.

Apparently, Daria Werbowy is also part of the Gucci relaunch. In these new images, the model and muse is seen in the chunky gold Gucci Marina Chain jewelry, magnifying an archival motif inspired by the maritime world.

It’s expected that Daria Werbowy will be the face of a larger fashion campaign, beyond this jewelry release photographed in Los Angeles at Chateau Marmont by David Sims [IG], with styling by Alastair McKimm.

Anne of Carversville doesn’t have current Daria Werbowy archives, but we’re spending a lot of time reassembling her best work in our very successful project of refreshing archives pre-2020. Note that these redone archives aren’t in chronological order.

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As Gucci Pursues An 'Exclusive Elevated Path', Anne Says 'Watch for Landmines'

As Gucci Pursues An 'Exclusive Elevated Path', Anne Says 'Watch for Landmines'

In-transition luxury house Gucci presents its Fall Winter 2023 campaign featuring Vittoria Ceretti, Aboubakar Konte and Brando Erba, lensed by photographer David Sims [IG].

Alastair McKimm styles the cast with hair by Paul Hanlon and makeup by Thomas De Kluyver. “Brakhage” by Stereolab is the music in the campaign video.

I noted a few months ago that we didn’t even post the new Gucci Valigeria campaign video, thinking it was just a stop along the way of Gucci’s reinvention. But that mistake was AOC’s.

The video is exactly in sync with the Fall 2023 campaign.

Many luxury brands — Louis Vuitton immediately comes to mind, but also Dior — are redefining luxury in more humanist terms. This branding does not prevent exclusive salons for best customers. But our common humanity — or ubuntu — is part of the luxury brand story.

Look at the new RIMOWA campaign, as a good example.

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Classicism Meets Something New in Loewe Fall 2023 Campaign by David Sims

Classicism Meets Something New in Loewe Fall 2023 Campaign by David Sims

With our creative, fashion minds wrapped around one word for the last three years — ‘surreal’ — Jonathan Anderson, creative director of Loewe for a decade, finally agreed with AOC that it’s time to bust out of the creative prison of everything is either ‘surreal’ or not ‘surreal’. Our binary thinking approach is beginning to bite us in our fashionable ‘derrières’.

Anderson seeks to draw attention to timely, complicated questions in fashion design — and they are not binary.

Talents Tang Wei and Taylor Russell are styled by Benjamin Bruno in Jonathan Anderson’s Fall 2023 Loewe Campaign, lensed by David Sims [IG]./ Makeup by Wong Chi Yee and Lucia Pieroni; hair by Lo Chu Sum & Duffy

“How do you go out of a surrealist aspect to something which is more about how we see clothing now? I think it’s kind of like a type of reduction,” he said. “Wanting to refine, and refine.”

Anderson is playing with our own minds in a very digital world.

In his Fall 2023 presentation, Anderson employed much eye-trickery. As Vogue noted, what appeared to be ordinary cardigans were, in fact, adhesive printed paper. Those cardigans were stuck on the models’ skins, but online viewers couldn’t tell the difference. We only knew what they appeared to be.

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Louis Vuitton FW 2023 Campaign with Emma Stone and Haim by David Sims

Louis Vuitton FW 2023 Campaign with Emma Stone and Haim by David Sims

Actor and brand ambassador Emma Stone headlines the Louis Vuitton Women’s FW 2023 Collection. American rock band Haim also joins the campaign, lensed by David Sims.

A Collection of Unbelievable Details

The most consistent and prevailing compliment to the Louis Vuitton FW 2023 collection is that one had to see it up close and personal, because the construction and fabrications in the collection are among the most luxurious and intricate techniques Nicolas Ghesquière has ever employed.

Vogue called the details “mindboggling”.

LVMH posted a 20 percent revenue increase in the first six months of 2023, with a profit from recurring operations of 14 percent among its fashion & leather goods division.

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Liu Wen Fronts New Gucci Bamboo 1947 Handbag, Lensed by David Sims

Liu Wen Fronts New Gucci Bamboo 1947 Handbag, Lensed by David Sims

In a new Spring 2023 campaign, Gucci celebrates the enduring style of its iconic Bamboo 1947 handbag. Supermodel Liu Wen is centerstage in images and video lensed by David Sims, with creative direction from Ezra Petronio & Lana Petrusevych./ Hair by Paul Hanlon; makeup by Thomas De Kluyver

The Gucci Bamboo 1947 handbag, originally known by its product number 0633, has a rich history that dates back to post-war Italy. In 1947, Europe was still recovering from the aftermath of World War II, and resources were scarce. Leather, a primary material used in fashion at the time, was in short supply, forcing designers to find alternative materials for their creations.

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Louis Vuitton SS 2023 Campaign with Hoyeon Jung and Cast by David Sims

Louis Vuitton SS 2023 Campaign with Hoyeon Jung and Cast by David Sims

South Korean ‘Squid Game’ actor and Louis Vuitton ambassador Hoyeon Jung plays with scale in the Spring 2023 campaign.

Jung just booked another very important beauty ambassador role with Lancôme.

The campaign is fast and young — more than usual. The playhouse structure is modeled after Louis Vuitton’s historic home in Asnieres, located on the left bank of the river Seine, some eight kilometres from the center of Paris.

Today the home is called ‘La Galerie’, and it functions as a permanent exhibition space for Louis Vuitton.

The rest of the cast includes Elio Berenett, Franzisla Jetzek, Greta Oberwalleney, Killian Smits, Sarah Brown and Samile Bermannelli.

Frequent LV photographer David Sims [IG] is behind the lens, with styling by Marie-Amelie Sauve.

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LOEWE S/S 2023 Men's Campaign by David Sims with Josh O'Connor, Stéphane Bak

LOEWE S/S 2023 Men's Campaign by David Sims with Josh O'Connor, Stéphane Bak

British actors Josh O’Connor, who played a young Charles in Netflix’s ‘The Crown’, and Franco-Congolese actor and comedian Stéphane Bak, fresh off his critically-acclaimed role in ‘Mali Twist’, are center-stage in LOEWE’s Spring Summer 2023 Men’s Campaign.

Benjamin Bruno styles the shoot, with creative direction by Jonathan Anderson. Photographer David Sims [IG] is in the studio, distilling yet another LOEWE campaign with an impeccable vibe of creative artisanship. Vincent Olivieri provides set design. Love it.

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Gisele Bundchen Does a Dance Class, Lensed by David Sims for M Le Magazine du Monde

Gisele Bundchen Does a Dance Class, Lensed by David Sims for M Le Magazine du Monde

Supermodel Gisele Bundchen loves to dance, so much so that it’s part of her inner-self and private identity.

Gisele covers the November 26, 2022 issue of M le Magazine du Monde, styled in a fashion story with a “Hi, I’m Gisele; this is another side of me” vibe.

Emmanuelle Alt styles Bundchen in ‘Le Ballet de Giselle’, lensed by David Sims [IG].

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Jennifer Connelly's Coussin Bags Shimmering Cruise 2023 Louis Vuitton Campaign

Jennifer Connelly's Coussin Bags Shimmering Cruise 2023 Louis Vuitton Campaign

Actor Jennifer Connelly, who announced in October that she will be joining the Marvel Cinematic Universe in a villainous role for an upcoming project, poses in shimmering metallics from Nicolas Ghesquière’s Louis Vuitton Cruise 2023 Collection for modern nomads.

Center stage are Ghesquiere’s latest Coussin bags in the same irridescent hues, for a fashion campaign styled by Florent Buonomano and Marie-Amélie Sauvé. Photographer David Sims [IG], video by Axel Morin, and creative direction by Charles Levai and Kevin Tekinel.

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Diana Silvers, Damson Idris in A Simple Gesture: PRADA Holiday 2022 Collection by David Sims

Diana Silvers, Damson Idris in A Simple Gesture: PRADA Holiday 2022 Collection by David Sims

American actor Diana Silvers and British actor Damson Idris celebrate A Simple Gesture: PRADA Holiday 2022 Collection with a new campaign focused on the unopened Prada gift box. Moving to the top level of the campaign, we acknowledge the unique Prada aesthetic whether in luxe fashion pieces for women and men, games, homewares and — of course — the handbag.

David Sims [IG] photographs the campaign, with creative direction by Ferdinando Verderi [IG].

Not featured in the holiday campaign is Prada’s exciting launch of its new fine jewelry collection, a campaign also created by David Sims and Ferdinando Verderi. Prada Launches Fully Recycled Eternal Gold Collection with Aura Blockchain Certification AOC Jewelry News

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Andreea Diaconu 'Into The Classics' by David Sims for Zara FW 2022

Andreea Diaconu 'Into The Classics' by David Sims for Zara FW 2022

Zara [IG] continues to hire top talent with its new collection ‘Into The Classics’, seasonal statement pieces including cashmere sweaters, a wide pinstripe jacket, denim, shirts, and more styled by Emmanuelle Alt. And they LOOK like Emmanuelle Alt as well.

Photographer David Sims [IG]captures the collection of timeless garments mixing a classic wardrobe with a fresh French touch modeled by Andreea Diaconu. / Hair by Damien Boissinot; makeup by Diane Kendal

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Prada Launches Fully Recycled Eternal Gold Collection with Aura Blockchain Certification

Prada Launches Fully Recycled Eternal Gold Collection with Aura Blockchain Certification

American poet, activist, Prada ambassador and UNICEF supporter Amanda Gorman; Dutch-Korean-Canadian singer, rapper and dancer Jeon Somi; and American actor and model Maya Hawke, daughter of actors Uma Thurman and Ethan Hawke star in Prada’s 2022 launch of Eternal Gold, representing the luxury brand’s first forray into fine jewelry.

In addition to being made from certified recycled gold, every piece of jewelry in the collection will be fully traceable, thanks to blockchain technology. Every purchase will be traceable by logging into the Aura Blockchain Consortium.

The Prada Eternal Gold collection is very modern a 100 percent recycled collection that pushes category boundaries. Amanda Gorman came to Prada’s attention, not because of her 2021 Inaugural Poem, but because of her environmental activism.

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Anja Rubik and Ludwig Wilsdorff in Boucheron 'Icons' Campaign as New Ambassadors

Anja Rubik and Ludwig Wilsdorff in Boucheron 'Icons' Campaign as New Ambassadors

Supermodel Anja Rubik and Ludwig Wilsdorff are the co-stars of Boucheron’s new “Icons” campaign, lensed by David Sims. Both Rubik and Wilsdorff have also become ambassadors for the house.

To have the women leaders of Boucheron celebrate Anja’s bold character on progressive human rights as one that articulates their own brand platform for this iconic high jewelry brand means everything to those of us on the front line of these battles.

It’s good business because every day more women — including wealthy women — understand that we are in the fight of our lives.

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David Sims Flashes 'Desire Lines' for British Vogue September 2022

David Sims Flashes 'Desire Lines' for British Vogue September 2022

The creative team putting together ‘Desire Lines’, clearly let their sensual imaginations run wild. We need it! Models Alessandra Caporaso, Anna de Rijk, Apollo Yom, Ask Putnik, Elio Berenett, Eva Wu, Juliette Grondin, and Vera Kuntz pose to provoke. Benjamin Bruno styles the edgy and subversive fashion story in images by David Sims [IG].

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David Sims Eyes LOEWE FW 2022 Campaign with Anthea Hamilton Pumpkins 5,6,7 2022

David Sims Eyes LOEWE FW 2022 Campaign with Anthea Hamilton Pumpkins 5,6,7 2022

Photographer David Sims [IG] captures the utterly delightful LOEWE Fall 2022/23 campaign, featuring models Anok Yai, Jeanne Cadieu, Lina Zhang and Violette Meima.

British artist Anthea Hamilton was one of four creatives shortlisted for the 2016 Turner Prize. Hamilton is known for her surreal artworks and often large-scale installations.

Anthea Hamilton brought her art in the form of Pumpkins no.5, 6, 7 2022 to the LOEWE Fall 2022 campaign.

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Louis Vuitton FW 2022 Campaign Hugs LV's Top 10 Status on Kantar BrandZ Ranking

Louis Vuitton FW 2022 Campaign Hugs LV's Top 10 Status on Kantar BrandZ Ranking

Norwegian actor and friend of the House Renate Reinsve, star of the critically-acclaimedThe Worst Person in the World’, headlines the new Louis Vuitton campaign that also includes Akon Changkou, Elio Berenett, Ida Heiner, Kristine Lindseth, Qisi Feng, and Tida Rosvall.

Louis Vuitton has risen into the top 10 global brands on the Kantar Branz Most Valuable Global Brands 2022 report, joining the ranks of Apple, Google, Amazon, Microsoft and other global mega brands not associated with the fashion industry.

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Kate Moss Takes Paris Lensed by David Sims for Zara 'Into the Night' and 'Into the Classic'

Kate Moss Takes Paris Lensed by David Sims for Zara 'Into the Night' and 'Into the Classic'

When the ‘90s party girl Kate Moss poses for British fashion photographer David Sims [IG], making one grand entrance after another in old-Vogue-style photography, it’s one more reminder that big brands like Zara are driving fashion visualization as much — or more — than fashion media.

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