loveSicily

Sicilianità by Dolce & Gabbana

World famous designers Dolce & Gabbana have recently been on the news for their return to Sicily as source of inspiration for their latest collections and for their interest in finding a direct way to communicating to people via the many possibilities the internet offers, like opening up the front row of their fashion show to bloggers or creating pre-show diaries on their website. I follow Stefano Gabbana on Twitter and love to see the photos he uploads, like the ones I used on this post.

They focused again on their fashion DNA, "Sicilianity, Sensuality and Sartorial tailoring" as they explain in the video below which opens with this statements:

"At the moment we are fascinated with the world that inspired our beginnings.

Sicilianità

Sartorialità

Sensualità

We like vivid colours, full of passion and history, like the shade of flowers and lemons and oranges."

Then a question:

"Why do you reckon that is? We are awaiting your answers."

I thought about this question, knowing that they are not really awaiting for my answer, of course ;)!
But the question about what "Sicilianity" is and what is so charming about Sicily is something I keep wondering about. My academic background in Ethnic Studies has left such a strong mark on my views about the world that I find it very difficult to find a strict definition about Sicilian culture or Sicilianità.
I can only say that Sicilianità to me is a mixture of deep, intensive feelings about this island, a strong link that ties you for life. No matter how far you go, in time, space, career etc, you will always feel that you would not be without Sicily. It is the DNA of your soul!

Going back to the collection, I love the corsets with jewels. They do remind me of statues of Saints that you find in our churches. There is an expression in Modica that we use when we want to describe someone who has overdone it with jewels: "pari a maronna i milici" (she looks like the Madonna delle milizie). This refers to a statue of the Lady which is in one of Modica's churches which has dozens of necklaces around the neck.

I also liked the Macramè and Silk combination, it truly reminded me of my grandmother. When she dressed up, macramè dresses were always her favourite choice. And she never missed the chance to wear a hat.

The baroque velvet dresses with ex-voto like jewels, make me think of the heavy dark drapes that cover the columns in our Baroque churches during Easter.

Finally, my top top favourites are the black brocade cardigans with large flowers, my friends know that I have a soft spot for whatever is either black or white with big colourful flowers. They often tell me that I have a very Sicilian taste. "Why do you reckon that is? I am awaiting your answers ;)!"

The fashion show here:

Written on
March 5, 2010
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