Earlier in the year, Pierpaolo Piccioli changed the sartorial landscape nearly instantaneously with his fall/winter 2022 show—sending out his models all made up in the now-iconic Valentino Pink PP shade, dreamed up in collaboration with Pantone. On the runway, the looks were sleek and sharp, from precisely tailored coats to dramatic platform shoes that synced with each silhouette, but off the runway, the Barbiecore movement was set in motion; where celebrities and style mavens alike freshly adopted the monochromatic look as their own. Which begets the question: what does Piccioli have in store for us next?
For the soon-to-be-seen spring/summer 2023 show, perhaps we might look beyond the clothes, and look instead, to exactly who he sends out on his runway. For his past showings, it’s clear that the Italian designer has decadently welcomed the need for diversity in the industry; both his fall/winter 2022 and haute couture 2022 presentations this year have been decisive in sending out a cast of models that range across all sizes, ages and gender. Similarly, in the maison’s latest postings on their Instagram account, the teasers for tonight’s show—titled ‘Unboxing Valentino‘—showcase a collage-like video of different models’s face and body parts, pointing to an overarching notion of how ‘different faces, perspectives and voices create the whole’.
So for what to expect from the upcoming collection—set to unveil at 4 Rue Eugène Spuller in Paris—perhaps we’ll have to consider how Piccioli’s idea of fashion has always been centred around the people wearing them. And as for who might be expected in the front row? If the stars are aligned, we might be in luck of the likes of Anne Hathaway, Florence Pugh, Zendaya and Dua Lipa, who are all friends of the house, to grace us with their scintillating presence.
Be among the first few to catch the livestream of the Valentino spring/summer 2023 show on Sunday, 2 October, at 8:00pm Singapore time below.
