A brief history of Versace’s ‘La Vacanza’ collection

It’s that time of year again: the fashion houses are releasing their summer campaigns, and what is more representative of summer than Versace’s ‘La Vacanza’ collection? Founded by Gianni Versace in 1978, Versace is an Italian fashion house that has stayed true to its Mediterranean values throughout its long reign as an internationally recognised brand.

The collection features warm-weather pieces, from swimsuits and board shorts to evening dresses and shirts

Donatella Versace started the annual ‘La Vacanza’ collection (meaning ‘the vacation’ in Italian) in 2021 as an ode to her love of holidays and how much she missed travelling. Suitably, the collection features warm-weather pieces, from swimsuits and board shorts to evening dresses and shirts. Since 2021, it has only grown in popularity and is now a standout feature for the brand. In honour of ‘La Vacanza’s’ tendency to look back on older collections and take inspiration from the Versace archives, I would like to dive into the history of the collection.

As I previously mentioned, Donatella Versace initially released the ‘La Vacanza’ collection in 2021 as a way to celebrate the summer season and the easing of travel restrictions after the pandemic. The 2021 campaign video features young people wearing pieces from the collection and talking about their holiday to Liguria, donning clothes with bright, saturated colours and bold patterns whilst participating in classic holiday activities such as eating ice cream and swimming in hotel pools.

The collection really gained traction in 2023, when Versace collaborated with Dua Lipa in a way that they had never done before

However, the collection really gained traction in 2023, when Versace collaborated with Dua Lipa in a way that they had never done before. Donatella and Dua went through the Versace archives, revising some signature prints such as the ladybug and butterfly patterns from the Spring/Summer 1995 collection. They debuted the collection in a runway show at Cannes Film Festival, choosing pale pinks and blues inspired by the Fall/Winter 1992 collection as the main colours of the collection. The models were styled as if they were straight out of the 70s, sporting voluminous hair, chunky sunglasses, blazers, and dresses with hardware embellishments. Donatella and Dua clearly executed their shared vision flawlessly and the runway video amassed over 1 million views on YouTube.

Although not as hands-on as 2023, notable years for celebrity collaborations include 2022, when Iris Law (daughter of Jude Law and Sadie Frost) was the face of the campaign, and 2025, when Sabrina Carpenter had her second feature in a Versace campaign.

In 2024, the signature print was the Barocco Sea pattern, which adorned dresses, shirts, and skirts alike. The coral and mollusk-themed print is explored in numerous ways throughout the collection. It was so characteristic of the Versace vision that they used it again in 2025. Moreover, Versace adopted 9,000 coral fragments in Bora Bora, allowing customers who purchased items from the ‘La Vacanza’ collection to name and monitor their own baby coral.

The shapes of the 2026 pieces are very 80s and the colours seem straight out of the noughties, creating a sense of nostalgia and familiarity but not boredom

The collection is celebrating the past this year more than ever, with the campaign being called ‘Versace Obsessed‘ and serving as “a commanding dialogue between past and present.” The 2026 campaign features a series of vignettes shot by Steven Meisel, picturing a bedroom scene with the ocean visible through the window. There are posters on the walls from previous Versace campaigns dating from 1993 to 2004, also photographed by Steven Meisel. The posters star Sophie Dahl in Versace Jeans Couture 2000, Amber Valletta in Spring/Summer 2000, and Kristen McMenamy in Spring/Summer 1995, among others.

There are a wide range of pieces in this year’s collection, with over 100 items for both men and women to choose from. There are, of course, the signature dresses, shirts, shorts, swimsuits, pumps, and clutches. However, this year’s collection seems to be much darker than is typical of ‘La Vacanza’, featuring many black or brown accents and silver hardware. The shapes of the 2026 pieces are very 80s and the colours seem straight out of the noughties, creating a sense of nostalgia and familiarity but not boredom.

It is also an effective way of celebrating their past work by going into the archives to find inspiration for the collection, giving old ideas a new lease of life and a modern spin

The creation of the ‘La Vacanza’ collection was perhaps the best thing Donatella ever did for Versace: the warm-weather motifs of the campaign perfectly encapsulate Versace’s brand and adds uniqueness to the usual fashion seasons. It is also an effective way of celebrating their past work by going into the archives to find inspiration for the collection, giving old ideas a new lease of life and a modern spin. This annual collection is fast becoming iconic, particularly through their collaborations and charitable projects, and I am excited to see what Versace do with the ‘La Vacanza’ campaign in the years to come.