PARIS COUTURE WEEK

Backstage at Giambattista Valli, Where Loofahs Are Haute Couture


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AMBRA VERNUCCIO

The beloved oddities and front row heartthrobs of men’s Fashion Week now in the past. Monday marked the start of the spring 2019 couture shows in Paris, which Giambattista Valli kicked off in characteristically opulent fashion, showing off more than 50 of what the house’s designer refers to as “huge, impossible dresses.” As usual, though, Valli—which is to say his hardworking team of seamstresses, who toiled away on the collection for hundreds of hours—managed to pull off making the impossible possible; they even squeezed 6,000 meters’ worth of tulle into a single, rather loofah-like look. Sticking to a color scheme of Valentine’s Day-appropriate reds and pinks, studded with a bit of black, the rest of the collection was equally voluminous—even the many mini-dresses, to which Valli affixed billowing tulle and floral trains. Head backstage with the photographer Ambra Vernuccio to take it all in up close—including Valli’s take on a couture fez—here.

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Backstage at the Giambattista Valli Haute Couture show in Paris, France on Monday, January 21st. Photo by Ambra Vernuccio for W Magazine.

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Backstage at the Giambattista Valli Haute Couture show in Paris, France on Monday, January 21st. Photo by Ambra Vernuccio for W Magazine.

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Backstage at the Giambattista Valli Haute Couture show in Paris, France on Monday, January 21st. Photo by Ambra Vernuccio for W Magazine.

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Backstage at the Giambattista Valli Haute Couture show in Paris, France on Monday, January 21st. Photo by Ambra Vernuccio for W Magazine.

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Backstage at the Giambattista Valli Haute Couture show in Paris, France on Monday, January 21st. Photo by Ambra Vernuccio for W Magazine.

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Backstage at the Giambattista Valli Haute Couture show in Paris, France on Monday, January 21st. Photo by Ambra Vernuccio for W Magazine.

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Backstage at the Giambattista Valli Haute Couture show in Paris, France on Monday, January 21st. Photo by Ambra Vernuccio for W Magazine.

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Backstage at the Giambattista Valli Haute Couture show in Paris, France on Monday, January 21st. Photo by Ambra Vernuccio for W Magazine.

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Backstage at the Giambattista Valli Haute Couture show in Paris, France on Monday, January 21st. Photo by Ambra Vernuccio for W Magazine.

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Backstage at the Giambattista Valli Haute Couture show in Paris, France on Monday, January 21st. Photo by Ambra Vernuccio for W Magazine.

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Backstage at the Giambattista Valli Haute Couture show in Paris, France on Monday, January 21st. Photo by Ambra Vernuccio for W Magazine.

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Backstage at the Giambattista Valli Haute Couture show in Paris, France on Monday, January 21st. Photo by Ambra Vernuccio for W Magazine.

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Backstage at the Giambattista Valli Haute Couture show in Paris, France on Monday, January 21st. Photo by Ambra Vernuccio for W Magazine.

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Backstage at the Giambattista Valli Haute Couture show in Paris, France on Monday, January 21st. Photo by Ambra Vernuccio for W Magazine.

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Backstage at the Giambattista Valli Haute Couture show in Paris, France on Monday, January 21st. Photo by Ambra Vernuccio for W Magazine.