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STYLE Edit: Kai from K-pop band Exo and Chinese actress Ni Ni rock Gucci glasses in new eyewear campaign

South Korean pop star Kai, a member of boy band Exo, was chosen to be one of Gucci’s regional eyewear ambassadors for the autumn/winter collection.
South Korean pop star Kai, a member of boy band Exo, was chosen to be one of Gucci’s regional eyewear ambassadors for the autumn/winter collection.
Style Edit

Kai – who recently broke up with Jennie from BLACKPINK – and Ni Ni, a ‘Yimou girl’ known for her role in Zhang Yimou’s The Flowers of War, were both handpicked as the regional faces of Gucci’s bold new eyewear collection

“The power of the individual” is the overarching theme of Gucci’s autumn/winter eyewear campaign this year, with two distinctive East Asian personalities spearheading the brand’s campaign narrative. Chinese actress Ni Ni, known for her role in The Flowers of War, and 25-year-old South Korean pop star Kai, a member of boy group Exo, were chosen to be Gucci’s eyewear ambassadors for the autumn/winter collection.
Chinese actress Ni Ni, known for her role in The Flowers of War, was chosen to be one of Gucci’s eyewear ambassadors for the autumn/winter collection.
Chinese actress Ni Ni, known for her role in The Flowers of War, was chosen to be one of Gucci’s eyewear ambassadors for the autumn/winter collection.

The campaign, shot by filmmaker and photographer Harmony Korine, considers the “mesmeric ability [of the human face] to evoke all manner of imaginative responses”, according to press notes. Korine also shot Gucci’s Cruise 2020 campaign film, which featured actress Sienna Miller, rapper Gucci Mane and “Godfather of Punk” Iggy Pop.

The autumn eyewear series features simple portrait shots of celebrities Ni Ni and Kai, who both look directly at the camera as if silently relaying their memories, experiences, beliefs and values. We see portions of their accessories, including colourful wool berets with a Gucci patch, but the focus is unequivocally on the face.

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Through this lens, house creative director Alessandro Michele expresses his belief in the “power of the individual”, a theme which we are also treated to in his runway collections.

Ni Ni rocking the round sunglasses from the brand’s autumn/winter collection.
Ni Ni rocking the round sunglasses from the brand’s autumn/winter collection.

Ni Ni, who has been a Gucci brand ambassador for six consecutive seasons, is seen in the latest campaign wearing two round style pieces from the autumn collection. Instantly noticeable are the oversized metal frames and coloured enamel stripe motif on both models.

The ivory and beige enamelled stripe, or ivory and black in the second model, extends all the way to the temples for a seamless design statement.

In a profile view of the sunglasses, we can see a fork-shaped temple construction, evocative of the 1970s. The tortoiseshell acetate end tips also add to this nostalgic character.

Kai models sunglasses from the Gucci eyewear men’s series.
Kai models sunglasses from the Gucci eyewear men’s series.

Kai, who broke up with BLACKPINK’s Jennie earlier this year, wears two models from the masculine club master series.