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‘90 x 90’ is the title of a new project from Gucci, a reference to the proportions of the Italian house’s silk scarves, which came into style in the 1960s after their adoption by the glamorous, country-hopping jet set. Boldly decorated with its signature motifs – from the classic metal horsebit to lush depictions of flora and fauna – the silk scarf has become one of Gucci’s foundational accessories, endlessly riffed upon by the house’s creative directors, from Tom Ford to Alessandro Michele.
Transforming the 90cm by 90cm square of silk into a canvas, ‘90 x 90’ invites nine international artists to respond to five thematic prompts that run through the brand’s archive: flora, fauna, nautical, equestrian and signature double-G monogram, an emblem which this year celebrates 50 years since its creation by Aldo Gucci. Flora, meanwhile, references the 1966 Botticelli-inspired illustration by Vittorio Accornero de Testa, which adorned a silk scarf gifted to Princess Grace of Monaco on her visit to the Gucci store on Milan’s Via Montenapoleone that same year (the neck scarf would remain one of her style signatures).
Gucci: The Art of Silk – The 90 x 90 project
Printed silk twill carré, created in collaboration with Robert Barry for the 90 x 90 project (available gucci.com), by Gucci
The roster includes conceptual American artist Robert Barry, whose version of the scarf features elegant twists of nautical ropes and chains, and Jonny Niesche, an Australian painter who reimagines the Gucci monogram through a saturated use of colour reminiscent of his own abstract words. The rest of the line-up encompasses performance artist Sara Leghissa, graphic designer Currynew, illustrator Gio Pastori, animators Yu Cai and Inji Seo, and cartoonists Everett Glenn and Walter Petrone.
Numbering 37 designs in total, with each collaborator creating more than one scarf across the various themes, the spoils of the project will be collated in a new book, Gucci: The Art of Silk, The Story of Gucci Scarves, published by Assouline. The colourful tome promises an unprecedented look into Gucci’s silk archive that the house likens to a ‘storybook’, a kaleidoscopic catalogue of artworks and narratives – which, despite their eclecticism, remain deeply rooted in Gucci’s evocative and enduring visual symbolism.
The 90 x 90 project scarves will only be available, in a limited run, in seven Gucci stores (one in London, Milan, Rome, Florence and Dubai, and two in Paris), as well as online at gucci.com.
The 90 x 90 project is part of a wider ‘The Art of Silk’ initiative by the house, which was revealed today (1 April 2025) in a new campaign photographed by Steven Meisel and starring actress Julia Garner. Titled ‘Keep It Gucci: The Art of Silk’, she wears various silk scarves inspired by Vittorio Accornero de Testa’s ‘Flora’ motif.
Julia in ‘Keep It Gucci: The Art of Silk’, a new campaign by Steven Meisel
A version of this article will appear in the May 2025 issue of Wallpaper*, available in print on newsstands from 3 April 2025, on the Wallpaper* app on Apple iOS, and to subscribers of Apple News +. Subscribe to Wallpaper* today
Set design: Caroline Nedelec. Set design assistant: Dominyka Proškenaite. Photography assistant: Lucas Matichard. Production: Melissa Phaisavath.