The retrospective exhibition Du Coeur a la Main: Dolce & Gabbana (From the Heart to the Hands: Dolce & Gabbana) has just opened its doors at the Grand Palais in Paris. This is the second global stop for the exhibition following a blockbuster sold-out run at Milan’s Palazzo Reale.
More than just a retrospective of decades of work by designers Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana, the exhibition also serves as a celebration of Italian culture. Just as the brand defined itself when it was launched in the 1980s as a combination of high-brow and low-brow influences, so here the exhibition takes in everything from the aristocratic balls of Milan to the rustic horse-drawn carts of Sicily.
It fits into a broader movement to turn the archives of major fashion houses into opportunities for exhibitions, such as the recent Chanel retrospective at the V&A Museum in London. “The fashion exhibition has been a huge phenomenon for about 20 years,” says curator Florence Muller. “I think it’s a new opportunity for the couture houses to show another aspect of what they are doing.
"If you think about it, a fashion show lasts only 10 or 20 minutes. The clothes are going around the catwalk for a few seconds. You don’t perceive much. These exhibitions are the opportunity to be close to these designs and see all the details. To see the beautiful work that was put into them. It’s a unique opportunity that normally only the couture clients have.”
From Heart to the Hands certainly delivers on the opportunity. The exhibition features around 200 of the fashion house's one-of-a-kind pieces from now-legendary Alta Moda, Alta Sartoria and Alta Gioielleria shows (each translates literally as high womenswear, high menswear and high jewellery) which are its answer to French haute couture, the schedule of which it is not part of. Only by seeing them up close can one truly appreciate the intricate craftsmanship that goes into these exuberant and theatrical pieces.
The world of Dolce & Gabbana is well known for being a more-is-more experience, but some of the details in this exhibition reveal an attention to detail and sentimentally some might not realise is part of its ethos. “In the atelier, there’s a painting that was part of the atelier of Domenico Dolce’s father, who was a tailor in Sicily,” reveals Muller. “This is a very important piece of art that he absolutely wanted to have in the exhibition.”
Muller’s curation is supplemented by scenography by Agence Galuchat and production by IMG, all of which combine to give this touring exhibition a real sense of permanence. The exhibition unfurls over 10 rooms covering 1,200 square metres. Each room has a theme of inspiration, from the mosaics of Sicilian cathedrals to the Scala opera and film to folk traditions.
Two rooms in particular stand out. First is the Devotion, which features models glittering in gold against a black background evoking a Baroque theatricality. The garments are inspired by the contrapposto figures sculpted in woodwork that were in vogue in the 17th and 18th centuries. The room gives off a true sense of the mysticism that infuses much of Dolce & Gabbana’s work.
The second area is the atelier. To access it, you walk up a flight of stairs dotted with black-clad models as if in a funereal procession. Once inside, it is a simulacrum of the brand’s Milan atelier where 120 people work on their intricate craft.
Here, five craftswomen are present and working. It is a moment to take in the movements of their hands, their focus and their dedication. It is in this space that viewers understand the quiet hard work behind the theatricality.
There is a somewhat political symbolism to the exhibition, too. French couture house Chanel has committed millions of euros to the renovation of the Grand Palais, making the first major exhibition to be held there by an Italian brand an act of fraternal friendship between the competing entities. It is something of a diplomatic coup.
In total, the exhibition will visit nine cities around the world, including the shows in Milan and Paris. Where the remaining seven shows are headed is still a closely kept secret but Dolce & Gabbana told The National that a Middle Eastern stop is possible. In the meantime, we'll always have Paris.
From the Heart to the Hands: Dolce & Gabbana is on show until March 31 at the Grand Palais, Paris
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PROFILE OF HALAN
Started: November 2017
Founders: Mounir Nakhla, Ahmed Mohsen and Mohamed Aboulnaga
Based: Cairo, Egypt
Sector: transport and logistics
Size: 150 employees
Investment: approximately $8 million
Investors include: Singapore’s Battery Road Digital Holdings, Egypt’s Algebra Ventures, Uber co-founder and former CTO Oscar Salazar
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Lexus LX700h specs
Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm
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Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh590,000
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If you go:
The flights: Etihad, Emirates, British Airways and Virgin all fly from the UAE to London from Dh2,700 return, including taxes
The tours: The Tour for Muggles usually runs several times a day, lasts about two-and-a-half hours and costs £14 (Dh67)
Harry Potter and the Cursed Child is on now at the Palace Theatre. Tickets need booking significantly in advance
Entrance to the Harry Potter exhibition at the House of MinaLima is free
The hotel: The grand, 1909-built Strand Palace Hotel is in a handy location near the Theatre District and several of the key Harry Potter filming and inspiration sites. The family rooms are spacious, with sofa beds that can accommodate children, and wooden shutters that keep out the light at night. Rooms cost from £170 (Dh808).
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
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Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
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THE BIO
Born: Mukalla, Yemen, 1979
Education: UAE University, Al Ain
Family: Married with two daughters: Asayel, 7, and Sara, 6
Favourite piece of music: Horse Dance by Naseer Shamma
Favourite book: Science and geology
Favourite place to travel to: Washington DC
Best advice you’ve ever been given: If you have a dream, you have to believe it, then you will see it.
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Brief scores:
Everton 2
Walcott 21', Sigurdsson 51'
Tottenham 6
Son 27', 61', Alli 35', Kane 42', 74', Eriksen 48'
Man of the Match: Son Heung-min (Tottenham Hotspur)
The burning issue
The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.
Read part four: an affection for classic cars lives on
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Museum of the Future in numbers
- 78 metres is the height of the museum
- 30,000 square metres is its total area
- 17,000 square metres is the length of the stainless steel facade
- 14 kilometres is the length of LED lights used on the facade
- 1,024 individual pieces make up the exterior
- 7 floors in all, with one for administrative offices
- 2,400 diagonally intersecting steel members frame the torus shape
- 100 species of trees and plants dot the gardens
- Dh145 is the price of a ticket
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Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
Available: Now
Uefa Nations League: How it works
The Uefa Nations League, introduced last year, has reached its final stage, to be played over five days in northern Portugal. The format of its closing tournament is compact, spread over two semi-finals, with the first, Portugal versus Switzerland in Porto on Wednesday evening, and the second, England against the Netherlands, in Guimaraes, on Thursday.
The winners of each semi will then meet at Porto’s Dragao stadium on Sunday, with the losing semi-finalists contesting a third-place play-off in Guimaraes earlier that day.
Qualifying for the final stage was via League A of the inaugural Nations League, in which the top 12 European countries according to Uefa's co-efficient seeding system were divided into four groups, the teams playing each other twice between September and November. Portugal, who finished above Italy and Poland, successfully bid to host the finals.
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LILO & STITCH
Starring: Sydney Elizebeth Agudong, Maia Kealoha, Chris Sanders
Director: Dean Fleischer Camp
Rating: 4.5/5
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