Mood board: Voluminous couture shapes, neon hues and flounces of taffeta – Pierpaolo Piccioli’s Valentino signatures are often mimicked again and again during fashion week. But for A/W 2020 the designer stripped back his prismatic colour palette, opening Valentino’s show with a series of all black evening wear and tailored pieces – leather bustier dresses, slouchy suiting with a sparkle of sequin, a sheer plunging gown with tulle ruffles. Pierpaolo was preoccupied with the power of uniform, and the possibility of enhancing character by reducing the fashion silhouette. Leather, houndstooth and suiting shapes were borrowed from a stock menswear wardrobe, seductively offset with flashes of vibrant red – seen in a trenchcoat, a wide collared peacoat and a final high neck sequin gown glittering with paillettes.
Finishing touches: Feminine fluidity came in the naturalistic motifs on accessories. For A/W 2020, Valentino introduced bags festooned with 3D petals. These were contrasted with bovver boots (autumn’s most enduring stompy soled shoe – also see Versace, Prada and Issey Miyake), which accompanied both tailored daytime looks and eveningwear.
Best in show: An oversized double-breasted jacket in soft leather was fantastically fluid, while an opening cashmere coat tied with a narrow leather belt was comfort and luxury combined.
Valentino A/W 2020
Valentino A/W 2020
Valentino A/W 2020
Valentino A/W 2020
Valentino A/W 2020
-
Puiforcat brings something new to the table with a wooden cutlery setJasper Morrison's collection for Puiforcat features cherry wood cutlery finished with fuki-urushi lacquering, a first foray into wood for the silverware company
-
A clifftop Rethymno house tells a story, framing views as far as the Libyan SeaThis house in Rethymno on the Greek island of Crete, designed by architects Gkotsis Serafimidou, is rich in local and natural materials – an oasis at which to disconnect
-
Waldorf Astoria Maldives rolls out a rare Ferrari joyride for guestsWaldorf Astoria Maldives, in partnership with Hedley Studios, allows guests to test-drive a scaled-down, all-electric version of Ferrari’s 250 Testa Rossa
-
The collections you might have missed this S/S 2026 menswear seasonBetween the headliners in Paris, Milan and Florence, a few off-schedule displays are deserving of honourable mention – from Martine Rose’s sexually-charged portrait of Kensington Market to Sander Lak’s appointment-only namesake debut
-
‘They gave me carte blanche to do what I want’: Paul Kooiker photographs the students of Gerrit Rietveld Academie for Acne StudiosHeralding the launch of a new permanent gallery from fashion label Acne Studios, the celebrated Dutch photographer’s new body of work praises the bravery of ‘people who choose to go to an art school at a time like this’
-
‘I’m surprised that I got this far’: Rick Owens on his bombastic Paris retrospective, ‘Temple of Love’The Dark Prince of Fashion sits down with Wallpaper* to discuss legacy, love, and growing old in Paris as a display at the Palais Galliera tells the story of his subversive career
-
The standout shows of Paris Fashion Week Men’s S/S 2026: Hermès to Craig GreenWallpaper* picks the very best of Paris Fashion Week Men’s S/S 2026, from Véronique Nichanian’s portrait of summer in the city for Hermès to Craig Green’s return to the Paris runway
-
Paris Fashion Week Men’s S/S 2026: live updates from the Wallpaper* teamFrom 24-29 June, Paris Fashion Week Men’s arrives in the French capital. Follow along for a first look at the shows, presentations and other fashion happenings, as seen by the Wallpaper* editors
-
What the Wallpaper* editors are looking forward to at Men’s Fashion Week S/S 2026As Men’s Fashion Week S/S 2026 begins in Florence, the Wallpaper* style team select the moments they will be looking out for – from Jonathan Anderson’s anticipated Dior debut to outings from Wales Bonner, Kiko Kostadinov and Prada
-
This monumental Valentino book is a true Italian fashion epicSpanning oral testimony, sketches and magazine spreads, ‘Valentino: A Grand Italian Epic’ (published by Taschen) charts the career of Valentino Garavani, whose mononymous Roman house would define a vision of Italian glamour
-
Donna Trope celebrates the power of the Polaroid in Paris‘Polaroids used to be my rejects, and now they are my holy grail,’ says the beauty photographer, as she shows rarely seen images in a Paris exhibition
