INSIDE THE STONE WALLS OF PALAZZO SETTIMANNI: GUCCI CRUISE 2026

The stone walls of Palazzo Settimanni, quietly guarding the Gucci archives — seemed to stir again, like a heartbeat returning after long stillness.
Here, where it all began, Gucci presented its Cruise 2026 collection: not as a spectacle, not as a statement. Less about noise, more about depth. A slow movement inward.

Inside the stone heart of Gucci’s memory — dimly lit, air thick with memory — guests were welcomed like a secret shared only in silence. No theatrics. Just texture.

The first look passed like the trace of a dream: deep velvet, a silhouette that recalled something unnamed.
Soft contrasts followed — brocade with sneakers, dresses layered not only in fabric, but in time.
Debuting like a memory, the Giglio bag — named for Florence’s symbolic lily — whispered of legacy without nostalgia.

In the absence of creative director Sabato De Sarno, and before Demna Gvasalia takes his first breath within these walls, the house itself breathed — and space opened for remembrance.

This was not a collection in search of direction, but one that honored the in-between.
A fashion offering not of conclusion, but an invitation to pause.
A moment, quite simply, to return to presence.

Soundtrack by
Frédéric Sanchez: Ti prego amami, Metti una sera a cena, and La Lucertola written by Ennio Morricone ‘La leçon particulière (II)’ (F. Lai/C. Gaubert)
Francis Lai: Footprints On The Moon
Johnny Harris: State of Contraction
Barry Adamson: Selenge M. Shrager/C.Dessberg – Céline Dessberg

IMAGE IN COURTESY OF GUCCI
TEXT BY AFRA RE