A troupe of eclectic bohemians are pictured among the ruins of the temples of the Selinunte Archaeological Park in Sicily for the Gucci Pre-Fall 2019 advertising campaign. In this site dating back to the 7th century BC, Gucci channels the spirit of the classical symposium, the after-banquet gathering where people would socialise to the accompaniment of music and dancing, listen to poetry recitals and indulge in long conversations.

Gucci’s Creative Director Alessandro Michele has an ongoing creative discourse with antique worlds and the decision to use Selinunte to create a contemporary tableau vivant is his latest expression.

Selinunte was an ancient Greek city founded in the second half of the 7th century BC on the south-western coast of Sicily and features nine temples on an acropolis, and three outside the walls on the eastern hill including the Temple of Hera which is visible in the campaign.

Presenting and photographing collections in such a location promotes its unique cultural heritage, making it relevant for the generations of today and tomorrow.  Alessandro Michele imagines a mythical place suspended in time, where diversities coexist harmoniously. He creates a contemporary fresco of freedom and expression in which the antique becomes the propeller of the present. In Gucci’s modern-day version of a symposium, friends and lovers meet to discuss philosophical and political issues, read poems, play music and sport, and dance together. Capturing Gucci’s magpie method of cultural juxtaposition, the youths are drawn from the counter-cultural groups typically seen on Venice Beach in California- hardcore punks, rollerbladers, bodybuilders and surfers.

The placing of these contemporary youth cults among the ruins of a classical civilisation makes for surreal and fantastical compositions, which echo art featuring ancient Greek and Etruscan depictions of these gatherings.

Credits:

CREATIVE DIRECTOR: Alessandro Michele

ART DIRECTOR: Christopher Simmonds

PHOTOGRAPHER/DIRECTOR: Glen Luchford

HAIR STYLIST: Paul Hanlon

MAKE-UP ARTIST: Thomas De Kluyver