Viktor & Rolf dress models during the autumn-winter 2010/2011 ready-to-wear show ©AFP...

Designers have been known to express their disapproval of collections designed by the likes of Kate Moss, Madonna, or Lindsay Lohan. Zuhair Murad told Relaxnews earlier this year that "people should stick to what they know," and, talking to The Independent, Hussein Chalayan even called celebrity clothing lines "insulting to us because it's like saying -- and I don't mean this personally -- 'I can sell more clothes off my name, off my brand, than you can, even though you're a better designer.' [...]"
Hence the trend, it seems, of 'real' designers showing off their craftmanship recently as part of their runway shows and campaigns: at Dolce & Gabbana's show in Milan this season, a big screen showed scenes of designers sketching and sewing at the ateliers, juxtaposed with scenes of today's celebrity cult surrounding shows.

Dolce & Gabbana Fall-Winter 2010-2011 ready-to-wear collection ©AFP PHOTO / Filippo Monteforte

And they weren't the only ones to stress that it takes a good artisan to make a great collection: Dutch design duo Viktor & Rolf wowed the Paris fashion crowd one week later when they de- and reconstructed outfits from countless layers on stage.
Gucci's current ad campaign shows the working process in ateliers, and even has a group of designers and artisans travelling the Gucci boutiques of the world, where they show their audience what steps are involved in making one of the label's handbags. Fashion fans can look on as moodboards are sketched and materials are worked into the final product, and they can even have their initials embossed if they choose to buy the bag.
Upcoming tour dates for these demonstrations in the U.S include:
April 19: San Francisco (240 Stockton Street)
April 22: Beverly Hills (347 North Rodeo Drive)
April 26: Chicago (900 North Michigan Avenue)
April 29: New York (725 Fifth Avenue

Published 17.04.2010