Valentino Couture SS25: Alessandro Michele’s Surrealist Vision Unfolds in a Theatrical Dreamscape

January 30, 2025 – Paris Couture Week, Valentino Haute Couture SS25

Valentino Couture SS25: A Couture Dream in the Dark

In his first Haute Couture collection for Valentino, Alessandro Michele staged a hypnotic spectacle inside the historic Palais Brongniart. With rain-drenched guests climbing into steep, shadowy seating, the atmosphere was as disorienting as it was mesmerizing. The show, titled Vertigineux, lived up to its name—provoking a sense of imbalance, a luxurious freefall into a world of couture-driven surrealism.

A giant black screen flickered with red lettering, intrusive like roadside warnings: messages Michele described as “signs you don’t want to see, but can’t ignore.” Each model’s arrival was marked by a towering, pixelated number—a countdown that felt both theatrical and unnerving.


Couture as Theatrical Excess

The opening look set the tone: a swirling, floor-length harlequin dress. It was kinetic in its movement, and kaleidoscopic in color. From there, Michele unfurled a collection of intoxicating excess. Crinoline-laced drama, sweeping silhouettes, and fabric manipulations straddled the line between historical grandeur and avant-garde audacity.

Sheer, ethereal skirts paired with rooster-feathered tops. Gowns cascaded in layers of ruffled lace, evoking both baroque decadence and operatic melancholy. Sequined pajamas peeked from beneath micro-pleated capes. A striking red chiffon gown—immediately recognizable as Valentino Rosso—felt like a relic from a Renaissance oil painting.

Michele immersed himself in Valentino Garavani’s archives, drawing inspiration from the founder’s aristocratic affinities and the idea of Bel Mondo—a world where fashion and fantasy converge. Yet, hints of his own obsessions crept through. Crinolines swelled into shapes reminiscent of Gone with the Wind. Venetian masked balls met the eerie theatricality of Balenciaga’s recent shows.

Among the front-row guests sat Demna himself—an unmistakable influence on Michele’s darker, more cerebral couture approach.

PFW: Valentino Haute Couture SS25- Vertigineux


“I wanted the show to feel like an epiphany,” Michele mused post-show, seated in a gilded Louis XV chair. He described couture as an act of surrender, an art form that transcends mere craftsmanship. “These dresses are not mine—I bow before them. I am not a tailor, perhaps not even a couturier. But couture is a journey that has taught me about techniques I never truly understood before. The time it demands, the patience—it’s something rare in fashion.”

The designs reflected this obsessive attention to construction. A diaphanous chiffon gown layered over a sequined bodysuit, complete with a bird-like mask. A grand floral ballgown concealed a clawed hand emerging from its bodice. An 18th-century-inspired silk jacquard suit paired with matching tights and feathered headwear. Its silhouette echoed the extravagance of Venetian courtesans.

PFW: Valentino Haute Couture SS25- Vertigineux


A Finale of Surreal Grandeur

The pièce de résistance? A four-meter-long feathered train, creating an illusion of weightless, floating movement. A quarter of the models wore elaborate headpieces—lace-covered berets, veiled hats, bejeweled crowns—transforming them into figures from a surrealist painting.

While Haute Couture’s traditional clientele may hesitate at the wearability of these pieces, Michele has never been in the business of practicality. His work exists in the realm of images, of making statement fashion moments.

The soundtrack built in intensity—oscillating between an operatic soprano and the pulsating industrial beats of Grischa Lichtenberger—leading up to Michele’s final bow. Meanwhile, his restructuring of the fashion hierarchy was clear: legacy press relegated to the fourth row, while digital-age influencers were seated in prime positions. Still, all were invited to a post-show reflection, where he spoke candidly about the weight of haute couture.

Vertigineux—it’s the feeling of standing on the edge, afraid of falling but knowing you must keep your balance. Couture is insidious. You have to know when to stop. At one point, I realized I had used 350 meters of fabric for a single look. That, to me, felt completely surreal.”


Upon departure, guests found an unexpected parting gift—catalogs filled with cryptic lists: emotions, fabrics, historical figures, symbols, words that defined the collection. A final fragment of Michele’s mind, a glimpse into the abyss he so skillfully crafted.


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