(images via ny mag)
as you’re by no doubtless aware, if you’ve read opt for long, is that i’ve been locked in an ongoing struggle with what the once-so-refined (and, okay, still occasionally so) house of valentino has become, in ready to wear (see resort 2011, s/s 2011, f/w 2011, s/s 2012), but of course more so in haute couture (see s/s 2010 hc, f/w 2010 hc, s/s 2011 hc, f/w 2011 hc). it isn’t to say, of course, the the house’s current designers, pier paolo piccioli and maria grazia chiuri aren’t talented—they quite are, and to prove that point, i myself—a noted dissident of the whole ‘celebrities-in-fashion’ thing—found an actress wearing one of their gowns to be one of the prettier ‘off the runway’ looks i’ve seen in the past year. of course, that actress in question is several years under 30, and that’s part of the point i’ll come to next.
the trouble, as i’ve always seen it, is that while valentino garavani himself tended to go in for a bit older customer (‘the missy market,’ as one of my design school teachers used to say), since their days at the helm, ms. chiuri and mr. piccioli have first gone in for a nouveau balenciaga-style look (for s/s 2010 hc), or, when that didn’t fly, the precious fairytale princess-thing they’ve been working these past three or so years (and particularly in the couture arena). that’s a bit of a problem, given the fact that, as the nyt’s cathy horyn pointed out in her review of the f/w 2010 couture show, it didn’t work for even longtime customers, like the stunning model/actress elizabeth hurley: “The designers like fragility, though it obviously flatters only certain bodies. As beautiful as Ms. Hurley is, she would have difficulty wearing many of the clothes Ms. Chiuri and Mr. Piccioli proposed. Too short, too girlish, too annoyingly fragile.”
in recent seasons, they’ve eased up to more-or-less varying degrees, but for their latest haute couture effort—s/s 2012—the designers were full-bore at it again, tossing out the kind of frocks that were vaguely reminiscent of what one might expect the fairytale poor-but-beautiful-and-virtuous long-suffering village farmgirl whipped up in her spare time from her lady’s castoff bedsheets (and somehow make her way to a ball, where she’d catch the eye of the handsome young dauphin, but of course). and before the temptation becomes too great for me to go off in that vein, i ought comment that there was real skill and allure, here, of course. i don’t want to debate that fact, nor that some girls (provided they’re in that appropriately youthful category) will look absolutely shattering in these creations. in fact, we can practically expect to hear critics operatically singing of whomever they choose to dress at the oscars in a few weeks’ time.
that, and of course there were plenty who were lured by all the finery. well and good, and perhaps even deserved, in a fashion. but (and here we should come to a momentary stop to let that sink in), if i was annoyed with the nyt’s cathy horyn for her airy-but-cold dismissal of the recent armani privé show, she showed us the side i admire with her synopsis of valentino’s: “In the program notes…the dresses had names like ‘Polignac’ and ‘Nicolas Ledoux,’ with a mention of the number of hours required to make or embroider the garment….Don’t say it looks like the bedroom curtains. The many floral dresses…did have an open-air feel to them, a nod to dreamy young ladies in French courts. But while the prints, and a passage of spare ivory crepe dresses and suits, looked feminine, the collection’s virginal innocence seemed precious and eventually it just got on your nerves. And I had the feeling I was looking at children, decorative, doll-like children, and not real women.”
but style was taken in with all the wide-eyed admiration of the young children the brand seems now to be courting, in reporting ” it was Marie Antoinette role-playing in her little farm on the grounds of Versailles who provided the collection’s ambience. The first model seemed to arrive in the salons of the Hôtel Salomon de Rothschild on a breath of cool country air. Sprigged flower prints covered almost everything. An antique fabric alchemy transformed taffeta into equally antique-looking blurred floral chaîne. The sense of precious old artisanship was also evident in the swirling bouilloné decoration. The volumes were diaphanous, bucolic, like the cloud of point d’esprit scattered with organza lace cutouts. The designers sought a ‘deep lightness.’ It was beautifully exemplified in dresses with up to five layers of lace and organza. Examined up close in the atelier, the workmanship defied comprehension. The stitching was so fine it was invisible. It signaled the heart-stopping delicacy that distinguished the collection.”
and us vogue, ever seeking the opportunity to take the scenic route to get a few scraps of opinion finally cast to the table had they opportunity to trill over the minutiae: “The pair’s tailored pieces revealed a stricter hand—a sleek ivory cape over lean pants for instance, or jersey or double-face dresses with hand detailing of extraordinary subtlety and skill. Thus the princess seams of an unassuming little dress were finished with rows of self-fabric piping spirals, graduated in scale from shoulder to hem…The program also revealed that 1,000 hours of labor, for instance, went into the handwork on the opening dress of elaborately smocked organza; 1,250 hours into the sparkling silver embroidery on a chine taffeta redingote based on an eighteenth-century version; and 800 hours just to weave the warp-print faille for one of those ball dresses. These breathtaking figures reveal just what makes the haute couture so special.”
declaring the collection “the best of the week,” (!?) the telegraph gushed over the “(g)auzy Chantilly lace the colour of milk or clotted cream was sprinkled with silver beading, washed-out flowers prints were veiled under a layer of tulle, toile de jouys (when did you last see one of those used in grown-up clothing) were whooshed up into frothy ballgowns. Even the shoes – lace slippers and heeled pumps- looked sweet rather than sexy…[the clothes] were almost weightless – quite a feat given all the embroidery, passmenterie and beading expected in a couture collection. It may have had a nostalgic demure look, but there was something futuristic about the technical engineering. But what was most striking were the necklines: many of them round – not overly prim, but not remotely revealing. ‘The time for a woman to reveal all she has is definitely over,’ said Maria Grazia Chiuri. ‘It feels much stronger to hold back’.”
and even my greatly-respected suzy menkes of the iht opined that “(f)rom the meadow flowers on light, long-sleeved dresses to the floral loafers peeping out from the ankle-sweeping hemline, the collection could not have looked more fresh and innocent. The alternative to sweet florals was white: short lace dresses or occasionally the same sleek shape for more rigorously tailored dresses. As Marie Antoinette and her Petit Trianon was an inspiration for the designers Maria Grazia Chiuri and Pier Paolo Picciolo, the charm of the collection was that the innocent floral decoration was not as simple as it seemed. But it is appropriate both to the spirit of Valentino and to its new generation clients.”
but uk vogue was a little more reserved with the compliments, allowing that “(i)t was all very prim and very pretty and had something of Jane Eyre about it with the high Victorian necks and the covered up nature of the looks. To add to this girlishness and primness were ponytails tied up with ribbon and shoes in the same fabric as the dresses worn above…it worked up to an idea of sophistication that was both romantic and girlish, and both light and luxurious all at the same time. Towards the end everything became more embellished and lace was covered in pearls and crystals. There were more high necks and long sleeves and it was much more extravagant. Then, as a palette cleanser, came white woollen trousers worn with encrusted crystal tops.” so you may, of course, like it if you choose. you would be in good company. i however, prefer to reserve my true affections for designers playing with something a little more complex and difficult than the notion of such lovely french maidens…which will inevitably be symbolized by the most beautiful of young actresses who come seeking them out.
(watch the full show video here)
oneporktaco 