Valentino
The Valentino brand is famed for its lavish, extravagant creations with a focus on extravagant evening gowns. Valentino Garavani founded his label in 1959 as a veritable couture house, a first for an Italian Label. He replicated much of the grandeur that he had seen whilst studying in Paris and put increased emphasis on the intricacy of his breath taking garments. Towards the late sixties he had made a name of himself as one of fashion’s legends even creating his own shade of ‘Valentino Red’. The house is synonymous with romanticism and luxurious embellishments such as feathers and flowers. On September 4 2007 Valentino announced that he would retire in 2008; his last Haute-Couture show was shown in Paris at the Musée Rodin to a standing ovation from the entire audience. In 2009 Valentino accessory designers Maria Grazia Chiuri and Pier Paolo Piccioli took over as the new creative design duo for the company. Maria Grazia Chiuri and Pier Paolo Piccioli, having worked within the Valentino accessory department, are very familiar with the label’s aesthetic. They have set out to maintain the luxe Valentino point of view whilst adding a energetic youthfulness to make the label more relevant to today.▼
