MILAN • Models on the Dolce & Gabbana catwalk on Sunday stopped in their tracks and took pictures of themselves - but it was all part of the show.

Against a backdrop showing a typical Italian village, design duo Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana took fashionistas on holiday with a spring/summer 2016 collection that paid tribute to their home country.

From Venice's gondoliers to gelato stands, they decorated dresses with all things Italian to make them look like postcards, some with messages reading

"Kisses from Rome" and "Greetings from Naples".

Under a banner reading "Italia is Love", a mock fruit stand, restaurant and ceramics shop decorated the catwalk before the Milan Fashion Week show began.

Songs in praise of Italy played and models stopped midway to take selfies on mobile phones, sometimes with the audience in the background. The photos were immediately beamed onto large screens.

Embroidery was on almost everything, in what Gabbana said was a tribute to the post-World War II tailors who helped create the status of modern Italy as a magnet for tourists from all over the planet.

REUTERS, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE