The Best Designs And Innovations That Daniel Lee Brought To Bottega Veneta
After three years, Bottega Veneta is parting ways with Daniel Lee, the creative director who helped catapult the brand to raving success.
After three wildly successful years, the Italian luxury house Bottega Veneta is now parting ways with its superstar creative director, Daniel Lee. The announcement came as a complete surprise, courtesy of a brief and watertight statement from Kering, the French luxury conglomerate which owns the brand.
Although it's just been three years, Lee's impact has been immense since his first collection hit the runway in 2019. He turned the stealth wealth haven of woven leather into one of fashion's leading brands.
In fact, the designer's crystal-clear creative vision has created a thoroughly distinct look for the house. It's one that fans lovingly dub 'new Bottega' – though that might not hold any longer.
Bottega Veneta has embraced green as a new signature colour for itself. That shade can be found throughout the collections, on the packaging boxes, and even on the feature staircase in the brand's recently renovated Marina Bay Sands boutique.
On the occasion of this shocking uncoupling (the official press release tacitly calls it a "joint decision to end their collaboration"), a brisk look back at some of Lee's best designs and innovations for Bottega Veneta. Whether they'll live on is another question.
And, in case you're wondering: no news yet on who Lee's replacement will be. Bottega has simply offered that a "new creative organisation" will be announced soon. With that and Lee's next move in mind, there's something to look forward to.
When Lee was first announced as Bottega Veneta's creative director, there was talk about how the then-32 year-old designer would handle the house's hefty heritage of craftsmanship. To his credit, he's taken it aboard with contemporary aplomb. Pictured here is a dress and matching bag from the brand's Salon 02 collection that's actually made from glass beads hand-blown by Venetian craftspeople.
Part of Lee's appeal is that he rose from the design studio Celine under the aegis of Phoebe Philo. The (mostly correct) assumption three years ago was that this designer would continue Philo's spirit of smart, sensual clothing for powerful modern women.
One of Lee's earliest innovations was to take the sanctity out of the brand's famous intrecciato woven leather. Here is a coat from the brand's Fall Winter 2019 collection that reimagined the visual effect of woven leather, photographed in Female's September 2019 "New Bohemia" edition.
Under Lee, Bottega Veneta ditched the traditional way of presenting its collections according to the seasons. Beginning in 2021, the brand came up with a new Salon and Wardrobe concept. The former being directional collections (the rough equivalent of Spring-Summer and Autumn-Winter) and the latter more approachable trans-seasonal lines. These are wood-bead pieces, first shown in Salon 01 (below) and then conceptually fine-tuned in the subsequent Wardrobe 01 collection (above) as more wearable separates.
One of the most enduring new styles that launched under Lee's tenure is the Cassette woven-leather flap bag. As buzzy as the designs get, luxurious artisanship is still present. To wit: buttery soft lambskin is bonded on the inside to the exterior's glossy brushed calfskin. That way, this technically unlined bag is still as beautiful on the inside as out.
Cassette leather bag, $3,190, Bottega Veneta
From the moment they first hit the runway, square-toe heels have become a Bottega Veneta signature. They ignited a wave of copy-cats, as well as a revival of strappy sandals in fashion.
Stretch leather heels, $1,520, Bottega Veneta
The moulded rubber Puddle boots were first launched in 2020, an endearingly clunky reinterpretation of classic rain boots. A side note: they're also extremely comfortable thanks to generously-cushioned insoles. This is one of the newer renditions, in glorious, glittery rubber.
Puddle rubber boots, $1,180, Bottega Veneta
And, of course, who could forget the bag that started it all? The Pouch is perhaps the brand's greatest success in recent years. There's been a host of versions made every season. This is a lovely mini rendition in one of this season's key colours, a shade of turquoise the brand calls 'Blaster'. While it's likely the brand will keep the Pouch in its collections after Lee's departure, it's really anyone's bet – which makes it quite worth investing in now.
Mini Pouch leather bag, $2,990, Bottega Veneta