What better way to get fashion types on the Gucci bandwagon than to invite them on a private train to Florence. Indeed creative director Frida Giannini was using her typical prescience when she chartered a 'fashion express' to collect guests - including Wallpaper's special projects director, Nick Vinson - at Milan Central in honour of the house's 90th anniversary. The destination: the new Gucci Museo, launching tomorrow in the 14th-century Palazzo della Mercanzia.
A fleet of Bentleys transported the fashion pack from Santa Maria Novella station to Florence's Piazza Signoria, where the Museo waited to receive its first visitors since the Florentine brand conceived of the project (the palazzo used to serve as the Gucci HQ until Giannini relocated the team to Rome; in Tom Ford's time they were in London's Mayfair).
The company's in-house architecture team, responsible for retail design, did a brilliant job with the museum interior, no easy task when you're dealing with such an old structure. Guests were invited to explore the three-storey space, though the highlight was the ground-floor Travel room, displaying not only the label's iconic luggage pieces but also a 1979 Gucci-branded Cadillac Seville, sourced from a very careful owner in Florida.
Upstairs, exhibits are dedicated to evening wear, handbags, rare valuables and florals (Gucci's Mondo Flora 'wallpaper' was a high point). And the top floor devotes itself to the company's logo, particularly the recently reissued double-G monogram.
House archivist Grazia Benneri has been beavering away for the past 15 years, amassing a collection that now runs into the thousands. Bags, shoes, luggage, jewellery, ready-to-wear, homeware and even surfboards and flippers form the Gucci archive, much of which is stored in the museo's private basement vault.
Giannini added to the collection items of inspiration: tomes made available at the ground-floor bookstore, run by Rizzoli; canvases displayed in the Contemporary Art Space; even films that will screen regularly at the in-house cinema. The absence of any reference to Ford's era at the brand (1994 to 2004) was noticeable, drawing more attention than if even a small selection of greatest hits had actually been included.
Guests were nonetheless delighted to proceed to the Palazzo Vecchio for a private dinner, followed by a performance by Blondie, featuring Debbie Harry in a platinum wig and a fierce pair of sparkly Gucci pumps.
Hundreds of Gucci gifts make the journey with us
... like specially wrapped copies of the International Herald Tribune and embossed boxes of Gucci chocolates, to keep us happy throughout the journey
My fellow passengers – including one carrying Gucci’s new Smilla shoulder bag – were suitably accessorised...
... and not just the women
Porters met us at Santa Maria Novella with empty trolleys, and left laden with designer luggage. The fashion pack doesn’t travel light
I would have preferred to ride in the 1979 Gucci-branded Cadillac, but I’ve been told it’s sitting in the museum. I suppose this Bentley Continental Flying Spur will have to do
The 14th-century Palazzo della Mercanzia, now the new Gucci Museo
The 1979 Gucci-logo Cadillac Seville, acquired by museum archivist Grazia Benneri from its Florida-based owner
Hot wheels
Suede bags from the 1979s. Creative director Frida Giannini recently reintroduced the double-G logo
A 1980s Plexiglass, straw and leather lamp with the familiar Gucci stripes. Naturally the interiors room was one of my favourites
Luggage with the now famous red and green webbing
Mondo Flora wallpaper in the Flora World exhibit
Chic towels in the bathrooms
After visiting the museum, we walked the black carpet to nearby Palazzo Vecchio. Drinks were held on the ground floor of the palazzo...
... Then it was time for the intimate, sit-down dinner
Every now and then you had to look around (and above) you to put things into context. A 90-year-old company in Florence is rather young when you consider the surroundings. The frescoed ceiling in Palazzo Vecchio’s Salone dei Cinquecento dates back to the 16th century
To conclude the evening, Frida Giannini introduced Blondie, featuring Debbie Harry, now carrying her sparkly Gucci pumps
An exterior view of the Palazzo della Mercanzia
The three-storey museum features thousands of pieces from the Gucci archives, together with other highlights such as a café, bookshop and contemporary art space
The Flora World exhibit, displaying vintage Gucci wallpapers and tea sets alongside the mannequins
The Logomania exhibit, on the second floor of the museum
The bookstore at Gucci Museo, managed in conjunction with Rizzoli
The interiors were retrofitted by Gucci’s in-house architecture team, which is responsible for all the label’s stores
Conceptual lighting artist Mario Nanni joined in the commemorations for Gucci’s 90th anniversary, creating a large-scale light poem entitled ’All Along Forever’ that cast an atmospheric splash of colour over the Gucci Museo’s windows
Melding architecture and lighting to mind-boggling effect, Nanni’s creation for the Gucci Museo was inspired by the ’pittura di luce’ (paint of light) movement that swept over Florence in the 1400s
A close-up of ’All Along Forever’ by Mario Nanni
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