Craft is our Language
A new campaign celebrating 50 years of the iconic Intrecciato leather weave.
‘Craft is our Language’ celebrates 50 years of Intrecciato, the iconic Bottega Veneta leather weave. The campaign, photographed and directed by Jack Davison, with choreography by Lenio Kaklea, honours Bottega Veneta craft and creativity, as well as the wider beauty of hand gestures as a universal language. First introduced in 1975, Intrecciato is a defining synthesis of artisanal skill and aesthetic imagination. Achieved entirely by hand, it is the essence of Bottega Veneta’s savoir-faire, passed down from one generation of artisans to the next. In the careful interweaving of leather strips, Intrecciato is also a powerful expression of interconnectedness, dialogue, and exchange.
In this spirit, ‘Craft is our Language’ captures hand gestures that represent Intrecciato alongside universal hand gestures that connect people across generations, cultures, backgrounds, and contexts. In still images and film, the campaign features Bottega Veneta artisans alongside outstanding practitioners in art, music, literature, fashion, film, and sports.
These include singer-songwriter and record producer Jack Antonoff, director Dario Argento, designer Edward Buchanan, artist and sculptor Barbara Chase-Riboud, singer-songwriter Neneh Cherry, filmmaker and creative Dave Free, model and actress Lauren Hutton, singer I.N, actor Troy Kotsur, actress Vicky Krieps, actor Terrance Lau, actress Rie Miyazawa, actress Julianne Moore, tennis player Lorenzo Musetti, actress Shu Qi, writer Zadie Smith, singer-actress Thanaerng, recording artist and producer Tyler Okonma, conductor Lorenzo Viotti, model Vittoria Ceretti, actor Yo Yang, artist and designer Marcantonio Brandolini d'Adda, Olympic Champion Guo Jingjing, and glass artist Ritsue Mishima.
Presented in both individual and paired compositions, ‘Craft is our Language’ stages a dialogue between maker and wearer, artist and artisan, hand and mind. At Bottega Veneta, we believe every artist is an artisan, and every artisan an artist. While Western discourse tends to distinguish between the two, ‘Craft is our Language’ honours the shared etymological root of both words, derived from the Latin ars, meaning “art, skill, craft”.
True to the house’s Italian roots, ‘Craft is our Language’ pays homage to Milanese artist and designer Bruno Munari and his playful 1963 handbook of Italian gestures, Supplemento al Dizionario Italiano (Supplement to the Italian dictionary), today published by Corraini.
Casting: Julia Lange
Hair: Sigi Kumpfmüller
Make Up: Hiromi Ueda
Set Designers: Staci-Lee Hindley, Julia Wagner
Director: Jack Davison
Art Director: Paul Olivennes
Choreographer: Lenio Kaklea
Director of Photography: James Beattie, Peter Hou
Stylist: Robbie Spencer
Production: Untitled Project
Craft is our Language
A new campaign celebrating 50 years of the iconic Intrecciato leather weave.
‘Craft is our Language’ celebrates 50 years of Intrecciato, the iconic Bottega Veneta leather weave. The campaign, photographed and directed by Jack Davison, with choreography by Lenio Kaklea, honours Bottega Veneta craft and creativity, as well as the wider beauty of hand gestures as a universal language. First introduced in 1975, Intrecciato is a defining synthesis of artisanal skill and aesthetic imagination. Achieved entirely by hand, it is the essence of Bottega Veneta’s savoir-faire, passed down from one generation of artisans to the next. In the careful interweaving of leather strips, Intrecciato is also a powerful expression of interconnectedness, dialogue, and exchange.
In this spirit, ‘Craft is our Language’ captures hand gestures that represent Intrecciato alongside universal hand gestures that connect people across generations, cultures, backgrounds, and contexts. In still images and film, the campaign features Bottega Veneta artisans alongside outstanding practitioners in art, music, literature, fashion, film, and sports.
These include singer-songwriter and record producer Jack Antonoff, director Dario Argento, designer Edward Buchanan, artist and sculptor Barbara Chase-Riboud, singer-songwriter Neneh Cherry, filmmaker and creative Dave Free, model and actress Lauren Hutton, singer I.N, actor Troy Kotsur, actress Vicky Krieps, actor Terrance Lau, actress Rie Miyazawa, actress Julianne Moore, tennis player Lorenzo Musetti, actress Shu Qi, writer Zadie Smith, singer-actress Thanaerng, recording artist and producer Tyler Okonma, conductor Lorenzo Viotti, model Vittoria Ceretti, actor Yo Yang, artist and designer Marcantonio Brandolini d'Adda, Olympic Champion Guo Jingjing, and glass artist Ritsue Mishima.
Presented in both individual and paired compositions, ‘Craft is our Language’ stages a dialogue between maker and wearer, artist and artisan, hand and mind. At Bottega Veneta, we believe every artist is an artisan, and every artisan an artist. While Western discourse tends to distinguish between the two, ‘Craft is our Language’ honours the shared etymological root of both words, derived from the Latin ars, meaning “art, skill, craft”.
True to the house’s Italian roots, ‘Craft is our Language’ pays homage to Milanese artist and designer Bruno Munari and his playful 1963 handbook of Italian gestures, Supplemento al Dizionario Italiano (Supplement to the Italian dictionary), today published by Corraini.
Casting: Julia Lange
Hair: Sigi Kumpfmüller
Make Up: Hiromi Ueda
Set Designers: Staci-Lee Hindley, Julia Wagner
Director: Jack Davison
Art Director: Paul Olivennes
Choreographer: Lenio Kaklea
Director of Photography: James Beattie, Peter Hou
Stylist: Robbie Spencer
Production: Untitled Project