Gucci Chief Executive Marco Bizzarri Meeting With Dapper Dan Over Blackface Sweater Disaster

Gucci Chief Executive Marco Bizzarri Meeting With Dapper Dan Over Blackface Sweater Disaster

Gucci Chief Executive Marco Bizzarri is planning to meet with Dapper Dan and other African-American leaders during a trip to New York this week to discuss the sweater debacle. “"I am a Black man before I am a brand," he wrote. “Another fashion house has gotten it outrageously wrong,” Dapper Dan said in an Instagram post. “There is no excuse nor apology that can erase this kind of insult.”

The renowned Harlen fashon designer and tailor originally gained fame knocking off Guuci’s logo in the ‘80s and ‘90s, before finding itself in the drivers seat when Alessandro Michele knocked off one of Dapper Dan’s designs in his own 2018 Resort collection. The two men signed a peace treaty with Dapper Dan collaborating with Gucci on a vintage hip-hop-inspired capsule collection. Then Kering stepped in to underwrite Dap’s new studio and atelier in Harlem, while making him the face of a special tailoring campaign. Gucci has also underwritten several art events celebrating black culture in Harlem and around New York.

As the former head of product development and fashion director for Victoria’s Secret, I recommend that Gucci load up a corporate jet with design talent and head for Washington, DC and a trip to the African American Museum of African American History and Culture. This will give them a complete understanding of the sensitivity of black face in America to progressives of every skin color.

Eye: Gucci Kisses Fur Goodbye, Launches Collab With Artist Helen Downie & Gets Dapper Dan In Harlem

Eye: Gucci Kisses Fur Goodbye, Launches Collab With Artist Helen Downie & Gets Damn Dapper In Harlem

Gucci amps up its collaborative mood with a series of brilliant collabs, including Alessandro Michele's own utilization of Elton John's archives for his spring/sumer 2018 collection. Featured here is Gucci's teamup with artist Helen Downie -- aka Unskilled Worker. The 40-piece capsule collection of ready-to-wear, shoes, bags, silks and accessories launched on October 11. 

Images from the campaign include models Stella Lucia, Ellia Sophia, Mia Gruenwald and Unia Pakhomova captured by Clara Balzary. 

Gucci's creative director discovered Downie on Instagram. The artist discovered painting without any formal training at age 48, rising to international fame in two years. Her creative breakthrough came in 2013 after a battle with cancer and a detox from alcohol and drugs.