An Ode to Valentino Garavani and the House’s Latest Couture Chapter

Michele’s references were layered and intellectual, yet poetic rather than academic. He quoted sociologist Walter Benjamin and recreated the Kaiserpanorama—a cylindrical, 19th-century viewing structure where audiences peered through small apertures to watch moving images. In essence, a historical peep show.

All 60 couture looks were revealed through tiny square windows, forcing viewers to lean in, to observe slowly, intimately. Though the format referenced early cinema, the couture itself evoked the golden age of Hollywood—a period Valentino Garavani himself often spoke about with reverence.

From the very first glance, the house’s signature spoke loudly. A drop-waisted gown in classic Valentino Red set the tone—unmistakable, dramatic, and emotionally charged. Valentino Red is not merely a colour; it is an identity, one that Michele handled with care and confidence.

Throughout the collection, red appeared as silk, velvet, sequins, and embroidery—never repetitive, always commanding. Elizabethan collars glittered under light, framing faces like living portraits. Feathers and headpieces nodded to showgirl extravagance, while sculpted gowns hugged the body with intention rather than restraint.

This was Valentino for women who do not shrink themselves. Women who understand that glamour is not frivolous—it is power.

In true Michele fashion, opulence was not edited out; it was embraced. Sequins, crystals, jewels, and heavy embroidery adorned garments that remained surprisingly disciplined in silhouette. Dresses stayed close to the body, sculpted with precise pleats and controlled draping before being lavished with surface embellishment.