In a great setting, Valentino challenges the format of the virtual fashion show

For its SS21 Haute Couture fashion show, the Valentino house took over Palazzo Colonna, in Rome.

It is behind a screen that we had the pleasure to discover this dazzling show. The health situation is forcing the fashion houses to review the organization of events by maintaining the ban on welcoming the public. No physical guests, therefore, but a wider audience: the digital presentation of the collection is open to everyone. Here we are in the Sala Grande of the Galleria Colonna, in Rome. A grand setting, ideal for hosting a haute couture fashion show. Under the gilding and the fresco of the majestic ceiling, it is easy to imagine the large receptions where the great evening outfits are displayed.

Artistic director Pierpaolo Piccioli offers an escape from time, with timeless pieces, shaped and fitting. He plays with our eyes guided by the camera. From a distance, an outfit stripped of all artifice reveals itself, while up close, rich in details. We thus discover, at first, a silhouette with clean lines. The tight-fitting dresses are deliberately designed like a second skin. Then little by little, the precious fabrics, the warm, cold, neutral colors and the shimmering gleams are revealed.

If the eye asks for more, it is helped by the credits that detail each silhouette and so much to humanize this virtual event by highlighting the names of the little hands who made each of the designs. For example: the dress with a buttercup yellow crepe line knit effect embroidered with alternating budellini and ribs, has been brought to life by Debora, Anna, Paola D. In this digital story, there is also a collaboration with the British musician Robert Del Naja aiming to give a more complete overview of the creation process of the Atelier, unveiled independently of the show, an avant-garde and ultra-contemporary project, in resonance with the world of today.