One of the reasons QUEERGURU first settled in Miami almost 30 years ago was the warm and welcoming queer community and how, like the town in general, it welcomed a really diverse crowd. Just like our hometown, London.  (Except for the sheer absence of sun.)  Our timing was perfect as it was the same year that the Miami Gay + Lesbian Film Festival started (it’s now called OUTshine). That sealed it for us, and over the years, we have so happily embraced both the local culture and the climate.  Plus, our arrival coincided with the discovery of protease inhibitors, which was such a sea change for people with an HIV and AIDS diagnosis.  This was no longer a death sentence, and all those hunky men who had come down ‘to die in the sun’ were now facing life after all,  which they started to live to the full.

Like any ‘newish’ community, there was almost an element of disparaging of what Miami had achieved and become ….. (I mean, have you seen The Real Housewives of Miami on Bravo). BUT when ‘we’ (as in the town)  get it right, we do it in such a style that can never be aped elsewhere.  This is very obvious when Switzerand’s legendary ARTBASEL takes over the entire city each December.

We would venture to say Miami’s Institute of Contemporary Art has gone one better than that with a current exhibition that has been such an unprecedented and major success for them . ‘FROM THE HEART TO THE HANDS : DOLCE & GABANNA  is nothing short of majestic.  We knew the designs of this pair of Italians were sheer genius, but we were totally unprepared for the collections that have been curated for this Exhibit.  Part art, part fashion & fantasy, and what surprised us most was the influence of religion and religious idolatry that seeped through so much of these original couture garments.  It literally made us want to worship Stefano and Domenico even more.

With over 300 handmade garments on display (and we loved the fact you could get up so close), this very passionate tribute to both beauty and excess honors not the designers’ creative genius but the teams of skilled craftsmen who had made them a physical reality.  Each room that you entered seemed to surpass the last,  and it’s hard to even come to terms with the sheer influence and legacy of this pair of exceptionally talented Italians.

The other star of the show is the Curator Florence Muller, who really was so very creative in not just her choice of outfits, but the loving attention and sheer respect she paid to ensure every single garment was shown at its best