Bottega Veneta is celebrating the golden jubilee of its most iconic signature, the Intrecciato leather weave, with a campaign that is as evocative as it is elegant. Titled Craft Is Our Language, the project commemorates 50 years of the house’s hallmark technique through a multi-disciplinary homage to human connection, handcraft, and cultural exchange.
Photographed by Jack Davison and choreographed by Lenio Kaklea, the campaign transcends traditional fashion imagery to explore the symbolic and literal gestures of craft. Intrecciato — the diagonal weaving of leather strips, known as fettucce, is elevated beyond technique to metaphor: a symbol of interconnectedness, a shared language between artist and artisan, mind and material.
In keeping with this spirit, Craft is our Language highlights hand gestures that embody Intrecciato, alongside universal gestures that bridge generations, cultures, backgrounds, and contexts.
The visual narrative unfolds through stills and films featuring a cast of cultural icons and Bottega artisans alike. Among them are director Dario Argento, writer Zadie Smith, tennis player Lorenzo Musetti, singer I.N, and actress Julianne Moore. Also featured are two individuals with deep ties to the house’s legacy: Edward Buchanan, Bottega’s former Design Director, and Lauren Hutton, who famously carried an Intrecciato clutch in American Gigolo.
In these portraits and vignettes, hands take centre stage, not only as tools of creation, but as communicators of culture, history, and intent. The campaign draws inspiration from Bruno Munari’s Supplemento al Dizionario Italiano, a visual ode to Italian hand gestures, nodding to Bottega Veneta’s roots in Italy while embracing global fluency in expression.
The campaign’s first chapter will be followed by a book and a second instalment of images and films in September, featuring a second cast of talents and 50 distinct gestures, a living dictionary of the values and vision of Bottega Veneta. In a world saturated with logos and noise, Craft Is Our Language stands as a quiet manifesto: that in the hands of a master, silence can speak volumes.
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