Dolce & Gabbana pays tribute to Madonna with SS25 show
Each season, we break down everything you need to know about the new collections in The Fashion Week Cheat Sheet. After speaking to the designers about their inspiration, their hero pieces, the faces on the catwalk and the names on the front row, we present your complete guide to spring/summer 2025.
Designers Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana had one woman on their mind this season, Madonna. The house paid tribute to the star with a collection that was inspired by her style in the 1990s, specifically during her Blonde Ambition tour.
Entitled 'Italian Beauty', the collection was a tribute to what are now some of Madonna's most memorable looks, and a celebration of her power.
"This collection pays homage to an iconic and powerful female figure, immortalised by cinema through the decades, capable of asserting her personality while staying true to herself," they wrote in the show notes. "A woman who plays with her identity, transforming blonde into a signature trait."
Theme and inspiration
"Madonna has always been our icon," the designers said of their muse for the season. "It’s thanks to her that a lot of things in our lives changed."
The superstar has a very close relationship with the brand, going back decades with the designers creating outfits for various tours and album covers, and Madonna frequently turning to it on the red carpet.
It is actually the second time that Dolce & Gabbana has dedicated a collection to the star, with the spring/summer 2001 collection also inspired by her style. For SS25 though, this was an homage specifically to her wardrobe during her Blonde Ambition tour in 1990, which had been designed by Jean Paul Gaultier and featured the now iconic conical bra. Models wore Dolce's take on this style, as well as bustier corseted dresses, sexy suiting and blonde curly wigs.
Hero pieces
All of the underwear as outerwear with its strings, laces and hooks were in reference to Madonna's most iconic look, while also symbolising "Italian seduction", and will no doubt be a hit on the red carpet, as will the fringed looks.
Who was there?
Madonna was front and centre at the show, wearing a full black lace look by the house, and she received a standing ovation from the crowd. Also in attendance were Naomi Campbell and Ashley Graham.
Catch up on more from the spring/summer 2025 shows here.
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