The Versace SS22 show at Milan Fashion Week got a heady injection of Future Nostalgia yesterday, as pop superstar Dua Lipa performed open and closing duties for the brand.
It heralded a big return for Donatella Versace after the last 18 months of no in-person shows, so of course she had to come back with a bang.
Versace’s Milan runway was stacked with talent too. Not only Dua, but appearances from Gigi Hadid, Naomi Thee Campbell and Emily Ratajkowski making it a veritable headline hitter.
Dua’s presence at the runway is also the culmination of a few years’ collaboration with the iconic Italian fashion house.
She’s repped Versace looks for some time whether on red carpets (notably her Big Hair 2019 Met Gala look) and performances (taking to the stage to perform New Rules at the 2018 BRITs, which solidified her as the Next Big Pop Girl in many eyes).
Oh, and it also helps that she’s currently the face of the brand’s AW21 line too. Get that synergy, Donatella.
Dua cut two impressive looks on the runway; her opening saw her don all black with flourishes of bright green make-up. Her outfit consisted of a safety-pinned pencil dress that recalled the iconic 1994 red carpet look by Elizabeth Hurley created by the brand’s founder, the late Gianni Versace.
Shutting the show, Dua then reappeared in a shimmery hot-pink number with a similar side-parting on the skirt. And of course, she ended the show by strutting one last time with none other than Donatella herself.
“Such an honour to open and close the Versace show tonight in Milan,” Dua wrote on Instagram. “A surreal moment I’ll never ever forget. Donatella, you know I’ll be your Versace girl forever.”
Elsewhere in Milan Fashion Week, we’ve seen the SS22 debuts of Kim Jones’ breezy and optimistic new line for Fendi, as well as the elevatory Maison Margiela finding new ways to celebrate the seemingly ordinary.
As for Dua, well, we’re still patiently waiting for the Future Nostalgia follow-up we all deserve. Take your time, queen!
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