Following its film screening at the Château de Chantilly last season, Valentino opted for the quiet intimacy of its salons on the Place Vendôme to showcase its spring haute couture collection.
Two years ago, the last time the Italian house hosted a show at its historic headquarters, large gatherings were still not popular due to the consequences of COVID-19. This time, creative director Pierpaolo Piccioli chose the setting to underscore the one-on-one approach that underpins the “sacred process” of haute couture.
“I want the type of audience that used to be in the haute couture salon when haute couture was born, but with different types of clothes that belong to this era, because I want this whole process of haute couture to become contemporary,” he explained in a preview.
Except today that crowd comes with its own crowd. Screaming fans greeted the arrival of stars like Jennifer Lopez, Florence Pugh and Kylie Jenner, along with her mini-me daughter Stormi Webster, who was making her debut in the front row. The burly bodyguards prevented other guests from entering the reception room where they were sitting.
The golden age of haute couture in the 1950s and 1960s is experiencing a pop culture moment, thanks to television shows like “Cristobal Balenciaga” and “The New Look,” and Paris designers are taking notice.
“These series help to understand what the world of haute couture is, because people don't really understand the real difference between ready-to-wear and haute couture,” Piccioli said. “Haute couture is made to measure, so that's the main difference. It’s made specifically for you, so it’s the ultimate personal experience.”
Her lineup included the stunning requirements of the red carpet, but also indulged in quirky daywear in unusual volumes and colors. Oversized jackets, palazzo pants, scoop-neck vests, fishtail skirts, and overcoats came in shades like chartreuse, oxblood, lime, putty, mustard, and sage.
Piccioli avoided elaborate embroidery, but his suits were no less labor-intensive. Small elongated discs were attached with patent leather to resemble crocodile skin on a bright green men's coat, while a barely-there chiffon blouse sprouted tiny white feathers that were actually made of cut organza. “Magic comes from illusion,” said Piccioli.
By contrast, achieving a peacock green silk dress that looked like it was simply draped over the body requires a lifetime of practice. At Valentino's workshop in Rome, Antonietta de Angelis, 81, is the master of these sleight-of-hand creations, Piccioli said.
“I know them all. I know his name. I know his life,” he said of his team, who took a bow at the end of the show. “For me they are not 'hands'. “I hate that the French call them 'petites mains' because I feel like they are human and project their lives on their clothes.”
In the run-up to the show, two seamstresses were busy attaching chiffon ruffles one by one to a silver embroidered slip dress. Meanwhile, it took four people to hand-pleat yards of forest green jersey onto the bodice of a billowy apron dress.
With 64 looks, the collection offered a dizzying array of awards season options, including a stunning cut-out black velvet dress trailing a long silk chiffon stole.
Piccioli said that each piece that leaves his workshop is unique, as no two people execute their sketches the same way, and that's how he likes it. “If you don't project your own experience, your own life, your humanity into what you're doing, you'll never feel the soul,” he said.
Up close, you could feel the care in each stitch.
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