A visit to Giambattista Valli’s airy, bright, and very elegant showroom, just near the Opéra Garnier, is never just about fashion, even if there is a mind-boggling array of covetable clothing, shoes, and bags. It’s about stepping into a lifestyle. The way the designer sees it, making clothes is about sharing a very specific dream of beauty, but that’s only half the equation: the other half depends on how the wearer chooses to interpret them.
“It’s a different way of looking at femininity that has nothing to do with age or body type,” he said. “[This woman] is not afraid to support her feminine side, because she knows it can make her even more powerful.”
He also no longer puts stock into rules about season or occasion. “I don’t want to listen to those things anymore,” he said. “Everything can be everywhere: why save platforms for evening if you want to wear them with your bathing suit? It all depends on who you are, the layers of your life and culture—that’s what’s important.”
Living without rules and constraints was the throughline for a collection that moved from a crisply cut beige blazer inspired by the saharienne to shiny, croc-embossed vinyl coats, summer jackets in Chantilly lace, prints inspired by Florentine frescoes by way of the Taj Mahal, or sparkly tweeds in fresh, summery hues of olive, marigold, or peony pink. That last shade also cropped up on bucket bags, in smooth leather with a removable pouch or in a handwoven, edge-painted version called Weave. (Of the palette, the designer said, “I always say you have to smell the colors because if it smells fresh, it works. If it smells dusty, it doesn’t.”)
There was plenty here for modern-day Swans, be it a four-leaf clover crochet or eyelet number for the beach or cocktails or a bouclé shift worked into sailor stripes that could be worn as a tunic over slim trousers or, as shown here, a sassy little dress with petal, pearl, and crystal-embellished patent leather platforms. Several pieces in draped jersey looked like they could go pretty much anywhere; so did a long coral dress with a tie in back. The rosebud prints and other florals will certainly connect with the designer’s base, too. Not all were as they might seem, however: upon closer inspection, one breezy little white peplum top revealed layers of work involving woven ikat, lace and silk cord.
And that, Valli said, was the point. “Not everyone will understand all the work that goes into something like that, but they don’t have to. To me, luxury is about what you express. It’s just a choice in life.”