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PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY OF DOLCE & GABBANA M assimalismo. Few words better describe what lies at the heart of the Dolce & Gabbana aes- thetic. Of course, one could employ the English variation, but why? "Maximalism" sounds so cacophonous by comparison, utterly without melody, and certainly less able to conjure up the romantic, often cinematic imagery one associates with the Italian design house—a widowed Anna Magnani discovering love with Burt Lancaster in The Rose Tattoo, for example, or Sophia Loren at her most luscious, rising from the sea in Boy on a Dolphin. These are massimalismo moments, to be sure, filled with womanly curves and passionate embraces, as well as that highly Italian duality, the dichotomy that exists between equal devo- tions to sex and religion and the iconography one encounters in each. Such layers are omnipresent in Dolce & Gabbana's women's collections, real- ized in sumptuous takes on sensuous dressing that are often as sly and subtle as they are overt: a red lace dress rife with lingerie details but which modestly covers the knees or a breezy minidress that caresses the thighs but which is emblazoned on its front with images of saints and angels embroidered in gold. So when Stefano Gabbana points to the impor- tance of massimalismo, an artistic expression that fairly rejoices in its contradiction to minimalism, as being key to the creative process he shares with Domenico Dolce, his business partner of almost Sweet Life By Laurie Brookins Domenico Dolce & Stefano Gabbana bring their delectable feast of Italian duality to a posh new boutique on Oak Street. Dolce & Gabbana's new Oak Street boutique features walls covered in red damask. 120 MICHIGANAVEMAG.COM 120-123_MA_FEAT_D&G_Spring_2014.indd 120 2/11/14 11:27 AM