Valentino’s Resort 2018 collection: haute luxe and athleisure

Actress Christina Ricci rubbed shoulders with model and photographer Helena Christensen at Valentino’s star-studded Resort 2018 show in New York last week. The duo took their seats alongside 200 clients and VIPs who were there to support the maison’s creative director Pierpaolo Piccioli as he unveiled his latest collection.

“I thought the show was divine and I don’t use that word often,” Ricci said following the show. “The collection was perfect, even dreamy, with everything done so tastefully. It summed up Valentino, which I would say represents amazing artistry, luxury and forward-thinking, while referencing tradition and history.”

The exclusive morning presentation was held in a chic loft in Zero Bond Street, in the city’s Noho district. Once a hub for New Wave punk – and having previously been home to iconoclasts like Andy Warhol and Jean-Michel Basquiat – the area was a fitting backdrop for Piccioli’s 65 looks.

At the strike of 10am, models weaved their way around the runway in a fluid collection of pieces in which hip-hop, punk and romanticism coalesced.

The soundtrack to Piccioli’s show darted from rap by Travis Scott, Kendrick Lamar and Drake to the minimalist compositions of Michael Nyman and the piano arrangements of Ilya Beshevli.

“I wanted to reflect the complexity and cultural richness of contemporary society,” says Piccioli. “I feel that my job is to represent the times through my vision of beauty. For me, beauty today is about individuality, diversity and a freedom to express yourself. Cities, suburbs and people are changing, there are new forms of artistic expression emerging – so I wanted to make a collection that’s perhaps more daywear than usual and is more ‘street’. It was the same for the location, I wanted it to have an intimacy and a point of view that was very much from the street and certainly not far from it.”

Piccioli’s stylistic vision for the cruise range was built upon four narrative blocks, the first of which was sportswear as the new de facto daywear. The second was the Italian designer’s “hip-hop” interpretation of familiar Valentino staples – reworking silhouettes, reimagining lines and volumes. The rise of multiculturalism in urban sprawls was another key influence for Piccioli, and his final creative foundation was a particularly nostalgic one.

“It’s all about the universal heritage of the brand,” he says. “For me there is a personal element to it. There’s romanticism and lightness to the collection, almost like something Mr Valentino would have himself created in the 1970s. To describe it in musical terms, I’m making new sounds from old aspects. That’s been my goal from the very beginning and in the final minute, just before the show, I felt happy I had achieved it. I have kept a particular style while reflecting Valentino in my personal way and in terms of how I see society today.”

Piccioli joined the Roman maison in 1999 with long-time creative partner Maria Grazia Chiuri. The pair was charged with reimagining the brand’s handbags and eyewear lines. Then nine years ago, upon the retirement of the company’s eponymous founder Valentino Garavani, Piccioli and Chiuri assumed the roles of co-creative directors. They are credited with having updated and reenergized Valentino’s many creative endeavours, from couture to ready-to-wear and menswear to accessories. Last year, following Chiuri’s exit to Dior, Piccioli took full creative control of the house.

“I love Mr Valentino, he is my maestro,” admits Piccioli. “I really love to hear from him after the shows, and he wrote to me just before you arrived saying how happy he was. It’s the very best compliment because he recognises that, as creative director, I’m doing something very different to what he did – managing the brand in a different way.

“I think that doing a ‘good job’ means respecting the heritage, craft, values and humanity of the brand. I also feel a great social responsibility in my role because so many people are involved in the company. And they support me every single day.”

Since Piccioli took the helm alone in 2016, he has admitted that his collections have become a little more spontaneous. He’s also still a fan of creative collaborations, having paired with British trailblazer Zandra Rhodes to devise prints for Valentino’s spring/summer 2017 line.

Inspired by designs from Rhodes's back catalogue and a triptych called The Garden of Earthly Delights by medieval painter Hieronymus Bosch, the prints adorned ethereal chiffon gowns and 70s-inspired crepe-de-chine frocks.

Piccioli revisited the Rhodes archive for his Resort 2018 Collection in New York, adorning jackets and dresses with her signature stamps from 40 years ago.

“He used my Egyptian leopard print and my lipsticks design,” said Rhodes after the presentation. “He kept secret which ones he would use until just before the show, so it was a wonderful surprise. I think he’s kept the collection incredibly feminine and highly wearable, with intricate detailing.”

Silk tracksuits billowed, trapeze dresses oozed street cool and versatile, boxy embroidered jackets were teamed with front-zip athleisure mini-dresses. Floor-length gowns appeared in stark minimalistic form as well as luxurious velvet and beaded fashion. And remaining true to the codes of the maison, Piccioli sent a tight edit of layered chiffon and tiered lace dresses before the crowd. Accessories-wise, feathered sports booties and Rockstud sandals with socks lent themselves to Valentino’s urban-elegant aesthetic for the pre-season.

“The studs have become a new signature of the house,” says Piccioli. “But I wanted to challenge perceptions of them and explore new territory. So, rather than them being gold and metal, they are white rubber and sporty. My intention is always to create clothes and accessories that allow women to remix and interpret them in their own way. Individuality is very important.”

Just like the client-muse he designs for, Piccioli is free thinking. He doesn’t fit the conventional couturier or ‘head of a house’ mould and, unlike many of his peers, he embraces the fashion industry’s densely-packed show calendar, thriving on the creative pressure. He also doesn’t feel the need to live in the Italian fashion hubs of Milan or Rome. Instead, he opts for a daily train commute from his seaside hometown of Nettuno, 60 kilometres south of Rome, where he lives with his family.

“I never stop thinking about collections, and finding a balance is not always easy, but it’s made easier by the people I have around me,” he says. “I’m very lucky to have a wife and three children that support me. They see that I am happy. If you feel good and love what you’re doing, I think that you can give back a lot more. That’s why it’s always important for me to go home.”

• To find boutique locations, see the Resort 2018 Collection and watch the live show from New York, go to www.valentino.com

rduane@thenational.ae