Valentino’s overhaul of an iconic space on New York’s Madison Avenue not only continues its refreshed design direction for investigating a site’s existing architecture, but incorporates a strong cultural element as well. The new three-floor boutique, which is best known for being the longstanding flagship space for Calvin Klein until 2019, has been transformed into a beacon of Italian style, not least from the soaring fluted columns on its neoclassical limestone facade from 1927.
Valentino Madison Avenue: a beacon of Italian style
Spread over a basement, ground floor, mezzanine and second floor, the mammoth 1,142 sq m boutique is a feast for the senses. Visitors through the grand double doors on the ground floor immediately experience the space’s monumental nature with towering seven-metre-tall ceilings and exposed steel columns juxtaposed by a statuesque green onyx display, trompe l’oeil marble carpets and sumptuous red velvet seating. Here, Valentino’s footwear and accessories are put on full display, while a separate jewel-box area clad with red velvet walls contains a taste of the label’s ready-to-wear offering.
A dramatic staircase constructed from a variety of marbles, including red travertine, white Bottinico and black Marquino leads up to the second floor, where the full women’s ready-to-wear collection is found. Defined by giant red lacquered wardrobes and an eye-catching black and white marbled checkered floor, the second floor is very much a continuation of the existing material palette downstairs for a harmonious atmosphere.
In the VIP areas, which encompass a private sitting room and dressing areas, bespoke chandeliers by Roll & Hill, chairs by the French architect Charles Zana and ceramics by Massimiliano Pipolo help to imbue a residential feel. This also extends to the men’s collection floor in the building’s basement, where a sprawling DeSede ‘Snake’ sofa from the 1970s and Mario Bellini’s Camaleonda sofas and poufs from the same era bring warmth to the space.
The New York flagship’s mezzanine floor has been dedicated to art and will present a rotating roster of local gallery presences, starting with the Magazzino Italian Art. The store’s opening coincides with an exhibition of large-scale paintings by Mario Schifano, to complete the ode to the house’s Italian identity.
-
A new limited-edition Rhodes piano and Gibson doubleneck guitar aim for the starsThe new Rhodes Mk8 Earth Edition piano and Gibson Jimmy Page EDS-1275 Doubleneck guitar revisit classic instruments at a price
-
The new interior design trends we spotted at Salone del Mobile 2024These are the interior design trends to look out for in 2024 and beyond, from soft upholstery to conversation pits and low dining
-
Tiffany & Co nods to its theatrical history with a surreal new campaignTiffany & Co campaign ‘With Love, Since 1837’ sees Dan Tobin Smith and set designer Rachel Thomas create an offbeat set
-
Inside Valentino’s glamorous new Sloane Street store, inspired by the art of haute coutureThe latest in Valentino’s ‘The New Maison’ store concept opens on London’s Sloane Street this week, offering an enveloping marble and carpet-clad space of ‘intimacy and uniqueness’
-
Men’s Fashion Week S/S 2025: what Wallpaper* knows so farEverything we know so far about Men‘s Fashion Week S/S 2025, from Dries Van Noten’s final show in Paris to guest appearances from Paul Smith and Marine Serre at Pitti Uomo
-
Alessandro Michele is Valentino’s new creative directorFormer Gucci creative director Alessandro Michele is named the successor to Pierpaolo Piccioli at the Roman house
-
Pierpaolo Piccioli is leaving Valentino after two decadesThe Italian designer is to exit Valentino after a critically lauded and commercially successful tenure as creative director of the Roman house
-
Inside Sterling Ruby and OTW by Vans’ skatewear-inspired collaborationAmerican artist Sterling Ruby and OTW by Vans’ footwear collaboration was revealed in Los Angeles, backdropped by a specially constructed skate park created with PLAYLAB, INC
-
Best in shows: Wallpaper* picks S/S 2024’s standout looksAs part of Wallpaper’s Design Awards 2024 issue, we select the winning S/S 2024 runway collections – and their defining looks – at the start of a new season in style
-
Inside John Lobb’s timelessly elegant New York flagship, a trove for shoe loversJohn Lobb opens its 700 Madison Avenue store, a walnut wood-clad space filled with sophisticated footwear for any occasion or terrain
-
Comme Si’s first store in Brooklyn is a design lover’s temple to socksSock and loungewear brand Comme Si launches a temporary Brooklyn store, a rich and inviting space created with designers Elias Studio, John Sohn and Yoonjee Kwak
