“This Collection Is a True Act of Love”—Alessandro Michele on His Gucci Ha Ha Ha Collab With Harry Styles
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Gucci’s Alessandro Michele and Harry Styles are a fashion match made in heaven. Their friendship goes way back: “We’ve known each other for such a long time, and our shared obsession for fashion is what has drawn us together,” Michele said at today’s Milan press conference for the launch of the Gucci Ha Ha Ha collection, which they sort of co-designed. It will bow in the brand’s stores on November 3.
“When I first met Harry, he had just ventured into his solo career, and I had just started at Gucci; he had chosen an outfit for one of his appearances and asked to see me,” Michele reminisced. “I was ready to be dismissive because I thought he was some sort of upcoming singer from a boy band and I didn’t have time for that. But then he came to the meeting dressed in a fabulous fake fur coat and I just loved it. I changed my mind in an instant. That’s how our friendship started.”
From that karma encounter onward, communications between them have been intense, and their WhatsApp conversations have become a sort of mood board of their shared fashion obsessions. “We send each other floods of images of what we like, and he has very accurate references, like he will send me a vintage photo of Serge Gainsbourg’s pinstripe suit with details of the lapel,” enthused Michele, clearly delighted at having found such a knowledgeable fashion mate.
“He’s the most courageous person in all the choices he makes, and he’s intuitively attuned to the new ways of self representation. His repertoire is vast, he has an interesting idea of sexy, and he’s extremely articulate and aware in his eclectic approach,” Michele continued at today’s press conference. Their conversations apparently always end with the Ha Ha Ha salutation, a neologism they’ve come up with that is a combination of their first initials as well as an onomatopoeic translation of the laughing emoji. That’s where the unusual name of the capsule collection comes from.
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Michele and Styles have a similar predilection for a British sartorial silhouette from the ’70s, that kind of eccentric aristocratic taste that transitioned into the bizarre wardrobe of pop royalties at that time,” underlined the Gucci creative director. To highlight the vintage flavor of the collection, the presentation was held at Cavalli Nastri, one of the oldest vintage stores in Milan. Tailored suits in Prince of Wales wool, trench coats in thick checkered tweed, and tartan kilts paired with crazily embellished jumpers blended so well with the store’s existing display that Michele said, “I actually had to check their label to see if they were Gucci’s or instead old garments handmade by small Italian sartorie in the ’60s or the ’70s.” Pleased with the fact that Ha Ha Ha’s high levels of execution were on par with those of the one-of-a-kind garments of that time, he added, “there’s nothing as beautifully done as custom-made vintage.”
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As in any deep friendship in which both parties feel confident and relaxed enough to share their true colors, Michele and Styles indulged their playful, childish spirits with this project. Cherries, rabbits, bananas, and a grumpy teddy bear decorate printed pajamas worn with hand-knitted waistcoats. Transformed into brooches, they climb the lapels of dapper double-breasted blazers à la the Duke of Windsor. Red heart appliqués appear on a pair of bicolor Chelsea boots. “Fashion is like surfing on life, it’s like the revolving doors of a grand hotel, and it makes sparkles fly like when you were a child,” concluded Michele. “Ultimately, this collection is a true act of love.”
Photo: Courtesy of Gucci1/12
Photo: Courtesy of Gucci2/12
Photo: Courtesy of Gucci3/12
Photo: Courtesy of Gucci4/12
Photo: Courtesy of Gucci5/12