On Saturday, April 6, Cher could be found on the dance floor at DG Martini, Dolce & Gabbana’s nightclub/restaurant inside its Milan flagship, singing the lyrics to her 2000s hit “Believe.” She serenaded her boyfriend, Alexander Edwards, among a crowd of hundreds belting the lines along with her. The poignant moment at the discotheque came courtesy of Dolce & Gabbana, which hosted a soirée in celebration of its new exhibition, “Dal Cuore Alle Mani,” or “From the Heart to the Hands,” that evening. The sprawling show, held at the Palazzo Reale museum from April 7 through July 31, is a sumptuous retrospective on the Italian house’s alta moda, or haute couture arm, which has been active since the label’s first Alta Moda runway show in Taormina, Sicily, in 2012.
The exhibition is a celebration of all things Italy, and features room after room of fashion from past alta Moda, alta Sartoria, and alta Gioielleria collections, alongside pieces of visual arts and crafts (commissioned paintings, Murano and Venetian glass chandeliers, Byzantine mosaics) that encapsulate the spirit of each Italian city highlighted—and their art forms.
Dolce & Gabbana’s reputation feels quite different in Italy compared to the United States. In Milan, the label is woven into the everyday cultural fabric—D&G’s presence can be felt in every corner: from its corporate offices, which span multiple blocks in the Porta Monforte neighborhood, to its various initiatives and sponsorships at institutions including the Pinacoteca Ambrosiana, which is part sponsor of “Dal Cuore Alle Mani.” At a press conference for the exhibition held the day before the party, the room was packed with journalists, fashion fans, local government, and even a high-ranking priest associated with Ambrosiana. “This exhibition is a personal message from Domenico and Stefano to the city of Milan,” D&G’s managing director Fedele Usai said during the panel, “and all over the country of Italy.” Despite that hyperlocal messaging, the show plans to tour worldwide beginning in 2025.
