NEW BALLY: If fall campaign imagery is any indicator, Bally’s new course under recently minted design director Simone Bellotti is poised to revert toward the classic aesthetics the brand has long been known for.
Shot by Alasdair McLellan at Villa Heleneum, the neoclassical headquarters of the Bally Foundation for art and culture on the bank of the Lugano Lake in Switzerland, the campaign fronted by a roster of youthful models candidly captured against the Swiss landscape exudes intimacy and a laid-back elegance.
It marks a departure from the hard-edged direction former creative director Rhuigi Villaseñor had taken toward the house’s codes during his yearlong tenure. Villaseñor, who designed the fall collection, parted ways with the brand last May.
Young Chinese singer and actor Roy Wang, who was named a global brand ambassador last July, as reported, is among talents in the images, posing in a full denim look with leather Chelsea boots sitting on the pond-facing staircase leading to the entrance of the villa, or clad in a tonal brown outfit comprised of a leather bomber jacket, sartorial pants and shirt against a view of the lake.
Roy Wang fronts Bally’s fall 2023 ad campaign, the first under design director Simone Bellotti.
Alasdair McLellan/Courtesy of Bally
Elsewhere, a shearling overcoat paired with baggy white trousers and penny loafers on a red-haired model and a technical parka worn bare-chested on a male model suggest Bellotti aims to soften the tailored looks paraded on the fall 2023 runway by Villaseñor.
Accessories come to the fore in campaign images, suggesting a focus on the historically strong category for the Swiss brand. Each full look image is juxtaposed with close-ups shining a light on handbags, including top handles and precious skin weekender bags, as well as logo-bearing leather clutches and shoes, such as the Scribe men’s dressy footwear.
Gucci alum Bellotti will present his first collection for Bally with a show during Milan Fashion Week on Sept. 23.