Valentino. Pre Fall 2026 - Lookbook

(Images:  Valentino 2025)

Alessandro Michele, after his stunning Spring 2026 debut collection for Valentino, has put together and equally impressive Pre-Fall 2026 array, clearly stating his masterfulness and visionary astnnessness to which Michele possess offering his post Gucci, before being ousted.  That being his whimsical and pre-pandemic thrift sensibilities, of effortlessly being cool of that very, and I mean very, slight sweet possit of early manufactured hipster looks, of the late Ys before the all starting settling into Xers middle class suburban dream, if they were able to make it past 25, encapsulating mix and match via the upcycle clothing trend which petered out around about 2019.

And with two lookbook collection under his belt and a runway show, Michele, who I cannot deny how he actually did revamp Gucci to be relatable, within his own creative view, which actually ended up being unviable for the conglomerate Kering who owns the Gucci brand name, Valentino, is now Michele's canvas, yet aware that the iconic Italian brand is owned by the Mayhoola Investment, the Qatari Royal Family, with the remainder owned by Kering.  The question everyone will ask, if conservatism is now being imprinted via the Far Right 'State' ethos, ala Trumpansim, and his 'moral' Right laced corporatism could be the restructured reality for companies across the globe, can Michele whimsical survive the process? 

Michele, like many other fashion designers are very much the corporate vanguard of creativity, apart from the challenging economic landscape, with rising costs of production, limitations of fabrics, that was all a spill over from 2020, and a slowing Asian market.  The fear, as mentioned, is new found Fascism breaking out everywhere around the world, which crimps the creative like no tomorrow, and I hope Michele maintains his "mythological world", as he described for his latest collection, and ethereal is his calling card.

One, also cannot dismiss Michele's carnal, or more aptably, the amorous as a counterculture, and yes, this can be missed as one of the important factors of liberation against oppression and the taboo.  And for his latest collection, Michele has kept the hedonistic, sexual energy of the 1970s very much intact, and that late 70s CBGB's punk ethos.  With Michere's quirky tailored looks, seen on the male models, through to his stylized eccentricity, laced with the amatory, mostly seen on the female models.  Also, note the amount of accessories with this collection, from jewelry, sunglasses to shoes, as Michele offers his expansive complementary of looks, derived from his time with Gucci.

Bless Michele, as 2025 comes to a close, and 2026 is most certainly looking darker and more dangerous than ever, for everybody.  We need escapism and rejuvenation, more importantly, mediation.  As the Fascists bombard us with an overload of information through the digital relays, turn off your phone and sit quietly.  Begin, moment by moment, and maybe day by day, you will not miss anything, and as Michele had said for his Pre-Fall 2026 array, "At this moment, it’s as though I’ve said to myself: all right, I want to undertake the exercise of looking at the void. Something I had never done before: to look at what I remove in order to see more clearly what remains, and what it can speak to" 

Absolutely.

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(A.Glass 2025)