By Charlotte Codd
Valentino may well have stolen the crown for ‘show of the season’. Creative directors Maria Grazia Chiuri and Pier Paolo Piccioli provided an event that was a shock to the senses from the get-go. And, as the internet now knows, the show culminated in a return of two of the fashion world’s biggest stars.
Gone were the whimsical array of dresses in romantic colours that we’ve come to expect of this global fashion empire. Instead, the AW15 collection was a stark contrast of monochrome – starting with the first geometric look. Chiuri and Piccioli sent out a clean aesthetic (reminiscent of brands such as Céline, Victoria Beckham or The Row) with only a handful of colour to break up the otherwise monochromatic palette. Even then, shades were more muted than of seasons’ past, with grey intermixed with burgundy and khaki to brighten the tone. However, Valentino’s statement lace gowns were still present, although in keeping with the tonal theme it was black and white lace that graced the models’ bodies.
As the collection continued, brighter shades came out and an exotic inspiration seemed to take hold of the designs. Dresses embellished with Chinese dragons and otherworldly accents upped the ante on the catwalk before the last look appeared amid a fashion crescendo. Suddenly, from nowhere, Hollywood had arrived on the runway. Two of the biggest male models on the planet, Derek Zoolander and Hansel McDonald (aka Ben Stiller and Owen Wilson) came strutting down the catwalk in full ‘blue steel’ attitude to uproarious applause, thereby announcing the return of their infamous characters for Zoolander 2 and simultaenously giving Valentino, and by extension Paramount Pictures, one of the biggest publicity stunts of the year.
Fashion’s finest were on the front row to see the return of the superstars, and the excitement that erupted was genuine, with the crowd capturing selfies of Derek and Hansel as they reminded everyone that ‘there’s more to life than being really, really, really ridiculously good looking’. Did Hollywood upstage the dresses? Maybe. But one thing’s for sure: they took the fashion crowd by surprise – and that’s no easy feat. Check out our video of the moment when Derek and Hansel re-united on the runway…
