Valentino is a brand many associate with opulent Italian glamour—but its relationship with Paris is long and varied. Valentino have shown on the Paris Fashion Week schedule for years, and a sense of understated Parisian chic underpins many of Creative Director Pierpaolo Piccioli’s collections for the brand. This was particularly true for Valentino Le Progrès Paris 3ème Arrondissement Spring 2022, which was unveiled in a lookbook shot exclusively in and around the trendy Marais district in Paris, including a cafè called Le Progès, which doubles as the collection’s name.
Parisian cafès have long been a mecca for the world’s best artists and thinkers. During the Belle Èpoque era, one could stroll into Café de la Rotonde in Montparnasse and find Picasso, James Joyce, or Gertrude Stein involved in deep philosophical arguments over coffee and cigarettes. Today, the French capital’s cafès still hold a certain je ne sais quoi and are filled with local creatives and fashion types from morning to night. Piccioli is one of contemporary fashion’s foremost visionaries, and so in his reimagining of a couture-clad Parisian landscape, coffee shops are filled with a coterie of Gen-Z A-listers: the TikTok star Dixie D’Ameilo, creator of the online platform the Youth Collective Project, actress Tina Kunakey, and filmmaker Christian Coppola are among those who appear in the Valentino Le Progrès Paris 3ème Arrondissement lookbook.
As for the clothes? They channel a relaxed, post-pandemic sensibility. There are opulent, feather-hemmed gowns of course, but there’s also slouchy suiting, boxy wool coats, straight-leg jeans, chunky woven sneakers, and shrunken lime green crop tops. Piccioli wanted the tailoring to feel “as light as an evening dress”, using soft fabrics and fluid silhouettes to create pieces that marry casual nonchalance with a couture-like attention to detail (think a delicate lace cape worn over denim, or a kaftan-like dress belted and worn with flat sandals).
Among the highlights were the accessories, including new variations on the house’s iconic Valentino Garavani Stud Sign handbag. The compact rectangular shape features a bold logo and simple gold chain strap, and is available in fresh new colourways like ‘Indian Violet’ and ‘Ultra Green’. The Valentino Le Progrès Paris 3ème Arrondissement collection is available now to buy in-store at Valentino’s Sydney Westfield and Melbourne Chadstone stores (just in time for Christmas—send a gentle nudge to your nearest and dearest).
DISCOVER Valentino Le Progrès Paris 3ème Arrondissement COLLECTION
Shop the new season and check on the availability of your favourites at either Sydney Westfield or Melbourne Chadstone. Alternatively, you can book an appointment to see the full Valentino Le Progrès Paris 3ème Arrondissement Spring 2022 offering in store. Call Sydney at (61) 02 8404 0888 or email vau.swf@valentino.com, and Melbourne at (61) 03 9568 7559 or email vau.cha@valentino.com
All images courtesy of Valentino.
SHOP OUR EDIT OF THE BEST NEW-SEASON ACCESSORIES BELOW:
VALENTINO GARAVANI STUD SIGN HANDBAG, SHOP NOW
VALENTINO GARAVANI TAN-GO PLATFORM PUMP IN PATENT LEATHER 155MM IN ‘CHERRY’, SHOP NOW
VALENTINO GARAVANI ONESTUD HEEL, SHOP NOW
VALENTINO GARAVANI VLOGO SIGNATURE LOCO BAG, SHOP NOW
VALENTINO GARAVANI LARGE ROMAN STUD THE SHOULDER BAG, SHOP NOW
