Louise Trotter Presents Her Soft Functionality
Review of Bottega Veneta Spring 2026 Fashion Show
By Angela Baidoo
THE COLLECTION
THE VIBE
Heart to Hand, Creative Construction, Confidently Quiet Design
It is not mandated that a new creative director has to start where the previous one left off. Or even continue on their thread, unless their tenure truly puts a house on the map and gives it such a distinctive voice that we can never separate the art from the artist. This is why it pays to be informed by opening a book or two on the history of a house such as Bottega Veneta. Something that Louise Trotter, its new(ish) creative director undoubtedly did as part of her acclimatisation with the brand, its ateliers, and in-house teams.
The cries of “That’s not [insert luxury fashion house here]” which often follow a designers debut are often by those who have never been within an inch of a brands sacred archive, been privy to those first fresh shoots of an idea sketched onto a notepad by the founder, or had the opportunity to discover an unrealised collection scrapped at the last minute. But Trotter has, and as is her right she can pick up the threads at any point in time of Bottega Veneta’s history and weave them into her own story.
With that said, Trotter shared backstage that she had spent time in the Veneto region in Venice with the houses artisans, and of course the archives. Where she decided to pick up the thread was the “early period between ’66 and ’77”, referring to it as a good starting point for herself. She puts this down to the revolutionary changes taking place globally with the rise of feminist activism in the form of the Women’s Liberation movement – not the first time during the week that this significant period in history has been on the mind of a designer. The ‘bold’ confidence which came from carrying a bag without a logo led to the conceptualisation of the designers first show, elaborating she said “I think I discovered this bold confidence to wear a bag without a logo. You have to be confident. So, I think that’s really what I wanted to say with this first show.” And from then until now, the house has built a signature craft technique in the Intrecciato weave, as recognisable as it is respected as a symbol of Italian craftsmanship. It is what has enabled the brand to steer clear of prominent symbols of wealth, such as the designer logo. Then, now and in the early 2000s logomania craze in-between. So, just as each successive creative director has had to build on a legacy of craft to stand out, Trotter is also continuing in that tradition.
As if knowing what was needed was a palette cleanser, after the kaleidoscopic explosion of craft that was the forte of her predecessor Matthieu Blazy (who presents his first collection for Chanel on October 6th), a pivot into putting the Intrecciato (celebrating 50 years) and the skills of the atelier on a pedestal was todays modus operandi. The beginnings of this new mood were confirmed in the designers recent “Craft Is Our Language” ad campaign, singularly focussed on the handcraft of the weave via hands and the universal language of gestures – a heart sign, a beckoning, the intimacy of interlacing fingers.
Presenting a heart to hand collection, as a woman designing for women, Trotter took the concept of liberation and developed shift dresses constructed using mens tailoring principles, so “all the dresses are sitting on a canvas, so they fall off the bodies, so they are like a T shirt” she said post-show, making comfort a key part of the equation for garments as effortless as loungewear. She also brought her way with fabric manipulation into the collection, creating cocooning folds and creases around the body, last seen and loved during her short time with Carven. The silhouettes may also appear ‘grand’ in scale but the focus on the ‘bust, waist, and hip’ is always present.
She wasn’t always thinking in practical terms, as a duo of fringed fibreglass tops attest to, moving as if created with CGI, this is the wonder which can be achieved when backed by expert artisans.
Bags, unarguably the Bottega Veneta bread and butter have been supersized so no differentiation was required across the sexes, and the focus was on the material – exotic skins, fringing, coloured weaves and an update of the iconic clutch worn by Lauren Hutton in The Gigolo, with Hutton front row of Trotter’s debut. Softly structured and of course sans logo, there were also whimsical nods in the form of a whale-shaped miniaudière.
THE DIRECTION
THE QUOTE
I think this show was really about the journey and the life of Bottega Veneta. I wanted to talk about its journey and that was through a discovery that I had going into the house and meeting the people, seeing the archives, etc. So I think I wanted to really talk about Bottega Veneta as a living person, and the journey that the house had been through.
Louise Trotter, Creative Director, Bottega Veneta
THE WRAP UP
Louise Trotter could not have got off to a better start with her debut, continuing the story of craft that weaves its way throughout the brands history, but bringing a heart and hand connection to the looks she presented.
Considering this collection as a ‘living person’, a Bottega Veneta archetype if you will, who embodies the brand and holds it to the highest standard, worked to collectively give each look a personality. And in a moment of candidness with The Impressions Editor-In-Chief backstage she confessed that she had in fact created a best friend for herself.
