Designer Spotlight 2025: Where Heritage Meets Avant-Garde

The 2025 design landscape is a thrilling juxtaposition of legacy and rebellion. Iconic houses are reimagining their archives with audacious flair, while a wave of new talent challenges conventions with boundary-pushing narratives. From Milan’s storied palazzos to London’s gritty studios, creativity is thriving. Here, we spotlight the brands and visionaries defining this era of design.  

Iconic Brands Reinventing Tradition  

Louis Vuitton  

At Milan Design Week, Louis Vuitton transformed Palazzo Serbelloni into a temple of opulence. The Objets Nomades collection featured a Pharrell Williams-branded pinball machine and butter-soft leather record players, while a reconstructed Charlotte Perriand villa anchored a star-studded soirée . This blend of futurism and nostalgia cements Vuitton’s mastery of cross-disciplinary storytelling.  

Hermès  

Hermès’ Milan showcase redefined minimalism. Suspended white cubes illuminated cashmere totems and Tomas Alonso’s dim sum-inspired glass tables, proving that restraint can be radical . The maison’s ability to elevate everyday objects into art continues to set the standard for timeless luxury.  

Gucci  

Gucci’s Bamboo Encounters paid homage to its 1940s roots, transforming San Simpliciano’s cloisters into a bamboo forest. Collaborations with Palestinian glassblowers and Dutch kite artists underscored Alessandro Michele’s ethos of cultural fusion—now carried forward by Sabato De Sarno, whose S/S 25 collection balanced archival motifs with sleek modernity .  

Loewe  

Jonathan Anderson’s swan song at Loewe was a love letter to craftsmanship. The 25 Teapots exhibition united artists like Rose Wylie and David Chipperfield, merging whimsy (hedgehog tea cosies) with architectural rigor. As Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez take the reins, Loewe’s legacy of art-meets-fashion remains intact .  

Saint Laurent  

Anthony Vaccarello resurrected Charlotte Perriand’s unrealized furniture designs, including her floating sofa for the Japanese ambassador’s residence. The collection, displayed in Tortona’s industrial spaces, bridged mid-century modernism with Saint Laurent’s razor-sharp tailoring .  

The Vanguard of New Talent  

Kate Barton  

This CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund finalist made waves at NYFW with her fish bowl-shaped purses—one filled with live goldfish, another with Goldfish crackers. Her S/S 25 collection blended technical prowess (liquid-like pink gowns) with playful irreverence, signaling a star on the rise .  

Dimitra Petsa  

London’s NEWGEN standout explored “the labyrinth within” through gender-fluid menswear and tan line-inspired prints. Petsa’s “wet-look” dresses, now adapted into swimwear and shirts, redefine sensuality with a mythological twist .  

Karoline Vitto  

The Brazilian designer’s Undertide collection celebrated body diversity with crisscross straps for larger busts and sizes up to 4XL. Casting curve models like Yumi Nu, Vitto’s draped bodysuits and minimalist tailoring challenge industry norms while prioritizing comfort .  

Tolu Coker  

British-Nigerian designer Tolu Coker staged a poignant ode to immigrant resilience at LFW. Models danced past her late father’s photographs in ’70s-inspired silhouettes, merging Yoruba proverbs with vibrant prints. A masterclass in storytelling through design .  

Fabiana Oliveira  

At New Designers 2025, Oliveira’s Saudade chocolate packaging—a nod to Portuguese nostalgia—stacked like Russian dolls. Her work, alongside Jess Day’s anxiety-themed children’s book and Ilinca Anastasiu’s tactile music art, highlights design’s power to evoke emotion .  

The Future of Design: Trends to Watch  

- Quiet Luxury vs. Bold Expression: While Loro Piana and The Row champion understated elegance, Miu Miu and Schiaparelli embrace maximalism with clashing prints and surreal accessories .  

- Sustainability as Storytelling: Emerging designers like Swyn Anwyl (New Designers) prioritize regenerative materials, while established brands like Stella McCartney innovate with recycled-shell trenches .  

- Gen Z’s Influence: TikTok-fueled demand for genderless fashion (Tanner Fletcher) and nostalgic maximalism (MELKE’s “Book Fair” collection) reshapes luxury’s identity .  

Final Word  

In 2025, design is not just about aesthetics—it’s a dialogue between past and future, restraint and rebellion. Whether through Hermès’ minimalist rigour or Kate Barton’s aquatic whimsy, creativity thrives where tradition and innovation collide. As Modish Muse’s editors often say: True style is eternal, never basic .