Within Miami’s Design District there is Sweet Bird North Plaza, and within the plaza lies Gucci’s snow globe. We’ve made it this far, we may as well go one step further. Within the colossal snow globe rests a sprawling landscape of Gucci’s century-old history. 

Paying homage to Gucci’s storied past, the enchanting globe threads the numerous strands of the house’s narrative underneath the installation’s curved glass. At the core of the project, Guccio Gucci’s early days as a porter at London’s Savoy Hotelーthe River Thames’ crown hospitality jewelーare reimagined. Although small in stature, the miniature version of the hotel alludes to Gucci’s monumental encounter with the luggage that would come to inspire the founding of his own boutique in France. These same luggage pieces, the elegant suitcases and grand trunks embossed with the distinctive GG Monogram, are reanimated against a backdrop of intricately designed small-scale buildings. 

Each of the globe’s animated scenes represent the decisive moments of Gucci’s story. The Palazzo Gucci, located in Palazzo della Mercanzia in Florence, remembers Gucci’s conception in the city of Renaissance architecture. The Wooster Street boutique in New York City stands alongside the House’s flagship stores on Avenue Montaigne in Paris and New Bond Street in London. 

Drawing inspiration from the label’s travel-inspired heritage, Gucci weaves its holiday legacy across global threads. In addition to the towering snow globe, the House also illuminated the façade of Palazzo Gucci in Florence. 

Complementing the global fête surrounding Gucci’s days of yore, the brand also takes over a series of Art Walls in Miami’s Sweet Bird North Plaza. The three murals are a collaboration with American artist Corydon Cowansage, whose additional work will be displayed at the Kaufmann Repetto gallery booth as part of Miami Art Basel. Adapting one of her existing works, Cowansage incorporates biomorphic shapes in undulating forms to create a sense of depth and movement embedded in the murals. The opulent designs, completed in a vibrantly blue palette, are reminiscent of floating lips, some protruding from the surface and others provocatively distorted into a smile.