If the scale of Valentino s anniversary celebrations helped to fuel the retirement rumors (it sure would have made one heck of a good-bye party), the man himself chose to address the speculation by doing what he s been doing best for the past 45 years: He designed a collection of such seemingly effortless luxe, calme, et volupté that it made the thought of a world without Valentino unlikely—no, make that impossible.
Sure, the ingredients were there for an elegy: an imposing venue a stone s throw from the Vatican (with walls covered by framed photos of past glories), a front row of his peers (Karl, Giorgio, Donatella, Tom, Diane), and a tear-drenched audience. But with this Fall couture show, Val skipped a laurel-resting meditation on his career in favor of a strong, sleek, and shiny take on the occasion dressing he excels at. He trimmed away the volume, allowing himself but a handful of fishtail gowns, and the same sense of editing applied to the color palette, which was notably restrained: black, brown, ivory, plum, and sage, with counterpoints of pink and the designer s signature red. Lamé added a subtle sheen in draped tops and skirts.
But if all that felt like a contemporary way to deal with old-school glamour, Valentino s mastery of classic couture embellishments—from embroidery to fur and feather trims—meant that opulence was never absent. A suit sparkled with threads of Lurex; another in an exploded houndstooth pattern was hemmed in a thick wool fringe; the bodice of a ruched lamé skirt was studded with multicolored stones. The expertise of the atelier was mesmerizing in an effect called "pages," layers of organza that fluttered like a stack of tissue paper as they moved around the hem of a skirt or the shoulders of a cape.
There are 45 years of evening extravagance on display in the exhibition that accompanies Valentino s anniversary. And yet what seemed significant in this collection s evening looks was, once again, what amounted to a kind of restraint for the designer: Take a long dress in black tulle with a sparkle of crystals, for instance, or a gown with a quiet cascade of pink ruffles. Given the significance of the milestone, it seemed reasonable to expect a blowout finale of Val red dresses. Instead came a handful of icy pink satin gowns, a cool, clear way for Valentino to let us know he s still got a few surprises up his sleeve.
