Craft is Our Language: Bottega Veneta Marks 50 Years of Intrecciato
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October 07, 2025
Craft is Our Language: Bottega Veneta Marks 50 Years of Intrecciato
Celebrating the enduring legacy of the Intrecciato leather weave, the Craft is Our Language campaign pays tribute to the House’s Italian heritage and artisanal excellence. Photographed by Jack Davison and choreographed by Lenio Kaklea, the campaign recognizes Bottega Veneta handcraft, as well as the wider beauty of hand gestures as a universal language.
In a world dominated by conspicuous branding, Bottega Veneta stands apart, recognized not by a logo but by the exceptional quality and understated elegance of its signature craft. First introduced in 1975, the Intrecciato weave is executed entirely by hand. With its dynamic diagonal design and flawless geometric proportions, it has become a tactile and visual hallmark of the House, distilling its integral principles and codes of softness, movement, and innovation. Lauren Hutton’s appearance with an Intrecciato clutch in the 1980 film American Gigolo cemented the Intrecciato weave, and the House, as symbols of style and cultural relevance...
A craft in motion
Over the years, the unique savoir faire of Intrecciato has been passed down from one generation of Bottega Veneta artisans to the next. It has proven to be a timeless and ever-evolving craft, continually reimagined in new shapes, colors, structures, and attitudes. Last month, Louise Trotter’s debut show for Bottega Veneta celebrated Intrecciato with a return to its original proportions, alongside experimental new expressions of dimension and texture. Lauren Hutton was among the show guests, sporting the iconic Lauren bag she first wore in American Gigolo.
A powerful expression of interconnectedness, dialogue, and exchange
Beyond its physical form, the Intrecciato is also an expression of unity and interconnectivity, a reflection of the House’s collaborative ethos.
Evoking the spirit of the “bottega”, or “workshop”, where people, ideas, and skills converge, each interlacing leather strand comes together to create something stronger, more meaningful, and enduring. Bringing this philosophy to life as a visual narrative, the Craft is our Language campaign, launched in May, celebrates the handcraft of Intrecciato and the wider capacity of hand gestures to create, communicate, and connect. Across both still images and films, Bottega Veneta artisans join talents such as Zadie Smith, Julianne Moore, and Tyler Okonma to explore a universal language built on movement, intention, and touch. Whether weaving leather, shaping artwork, or expressing thought, each gesture becomes part of a shared vocabulary that transcends generations, cultures, and contexts.
The language of gesture is universal.
In continuation of the House’s engagement with Italian artists and thinkers, the campaign pays homage to Milanese artist and designer Bruno Munari and his quirky 1963 handbook of Italian gestures, Supplemento al Dizionario Italiano (Supplement to the Italian Dictionary). In the book, and throughout his work, Munari explores how the interplay of hands tells stories and creates connection. The Craft is our Language campaign draws on this idea, both in concept and in its black-and-white aesthetic.
Craft is our Language reaffirms the House’s collective creative vision, commitment to luxury defined by discretion, and craft as its true signature. Following the first wave of the campaign, a second chapter in September introduced ten new talents, further exploring gestures as a universal language. This was accompanied by the launch of the Campana bag, a generous tote that reimagines an archival Intrecciato design originally introduced in Spring 2004. With a capacious, unlined interior that showcases the perfectly intertwined leather, the bag is exemplary of the enduring evolution of Intrecciato over. A campaign book has also been published, including an essay on Intrecciato and introductions to both Bruno Munari and one of the Bottega Veneta founders, Renzo Zengiaro.
Coinciding with the launch of the book, a second chapter of the campaign introduces ten new talents, further exploring gestures as a universal language. Together, the publication, new imagery, and return of an iconic piece form an ongoing conversation between past and present, craft and creativity.
