Valentino Shows First RTW Collection Since Garavani's Passing
Trading Michele’s Gucci-era maximalism for an artfully crafted collection rooted in intellectual restraint and aesthetic balance.
Summary
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Alessandro Michele’s Valentino FW26 debut at Palazzo Barberini swaps Gucci-era maximalism for intellectual restraint and artful draping.
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The collection balances architectural tailoring with philosophical depth, featuring mutating pleated overcoats and elegant silhouettes that prioritize “subtle complexity” over loud logos.
If Demna is looksmaximg at Gucci, then Alessandro Michele is booksmaxxing at Valentino. The maison’s first RTW show since Garavani’s death was presented at the historic Palazzo Barberini in Rome. Creative director Alessandro Michele complemented the runway show with a four-page essay, diving into the Palazzo’s history and architectural identity. The show notes are filled with philosophical musings about architecture, philosophy, and culture, name-dropping thinkers like Friedrich Nietzsche, Walter Benjamin, and George Simmel. Towards the end, Michele declares, “Palazzo Barberini is not a simple backdrop, it is an apparatus for critical reactivation. Far from being a mere host to the bodies, the building claims them, orienting and exposing them, forcing a confrontation with a history of hierarchy and torsion, of axes and curves.”
How does this translate into the clothing? Michele clarifies his approach this season with a dialectic that intersects “code and deviation, lightness and gravity, rule and profusion, transparency and opacity, conformity and transgression.” The idea is rendered into garments, including a mutating overcoat pleated on one side from the shoulder to the hemline. Elsewhere, draping is emphasized instead of tailoring. One male model wore an elegantly draped mauve crewneck worn with classic trousers and sneakers.
The collection itself could be one of Michele’s most prolific since leaving Gucci and joining the house in 2024. At Gucci, Michele’s expression couldn’t be further from today’s Valentino. Whereas his tenure at Gucci was maximalist, ironic, and logo’d out, this collection is restrained, thought-provoking, and artful. Clean, classic silhouettes mutated with unexpected details. Architectural tailoring was fused with skillful drapery. Complexity was balanced with simplicity. Yet all that much was done with a tasteful subtlety.
See the gallery above for a full look at Valentino FW26 and stay tuned to Hypebeast for the latest fashion industry news and insights.
