Dolce & Gabbana Shift from Sexy to Sensual

Dolce & Gabbana is renowned for moving with the times while somehow still preserving old-school glitz and sex appeal...

Dolce & Gabbana is renowned for moving with the times while somehow still preserving old-school glitz and sex appeal. Their recent Milan show for Fall/Winter 2023 once again demonstrates that power to hold the new and old together, while adding an even stronger jolt of sensuality. D&G brings their past into the present by evoking the pleasures of the flesh in an empowered and grown-up collection.

What “Sensuality” Means to D&G

For Dolce & Gabbana the “Sensuale” show marks a clever shift away from making a woman look merely “sexy” to unleashing her complete sensuality. This is the difference between being an object versus being the subject, the actor rather than the acted-upon. D&G explained their vision of a woman’s sensual nature in terms of freedom:

“Sensuality is intrinsically connected to an inner experience that makes women spontaneous and natural. Free of any fabrication.”

The woman represented by this collection, then, is both fully aware of her senses and fully in possession of herself. She can authentically experience all that she feels, because she has been freed from defining herself by the gaze of others; instead, she decides what that gaze falls upon. Of course, her newly freed sensual life force ensures that she still attracts those gazes!

Getting Sensual with D&G in Milan

During Milan's Fashion Week, Dolce and Gabbana presented a multi-faceted collection that delivered on the message that every aspect of a woman’s life can be a feast for the senses. The looks were able to mix conventionally “feminine” and “masculine” elements to put the body and its delights front and center.

Sheer tulle, lace and chiffon lovingly wrap or flirtatiously flutter around liberated bodies. The viewer is continually presented with the wearer’s physicality and thus her sensuality. From dramatic lingerie looks to passionately romantic dresses, this collection puts feelings first.

Conversely, the wool and fur of a precisely tailored coat highlights the ability to surround one’s body in a cocoon of self-protection, providing a more controlled sensory environment. Responding to both her inner and outer sensations, the D&G woman creates and re-creates the texture of her life.

The simplified color palette may seem restrictive, but in fact it supercharges the collection’s appeal to the senses. Black, the color of concentrated power, dominates most of the pieces. The forcefulness of black is enlivened by the assertive sensuality of red, as well as the flash of elegant yet futuristic gold. Living sensually means living with drama, and these dramatic colors undeniably spark a feeling of being stimulated by life’s chances.

Wanted: More Strong and Sensual Women

Since Dolce & Gabbana have epitomized sensuality for so many years, they are the perfect house to redefine what sensuality can mean to a modern woman. What’s most exciting is the potential for that sensuality to keep being redefined as fashion—and society as a whole—continues to progress. The bold and romantic Fall 2023 collection presented in Dolce & Gabbana’s “Sensuale” show has perfectly demonstrated the house’s ability to look back without going backwards.