THE NEW MASTER

Valentino’s PIERPAOLO PICCIOLI creates fashion dreams, but his greatest power is being himself

- LAURA BROWN

All clothing throughout, Valentino. All accessories, Valentino Garavani

After working at Fendi for almost 10 years, Pierpaolo Piccioli joined Valentino as an accessories designer in 1999. Now, 21 years later, as the sole creative director of the house (following the departure of Maria Grazia Chiuri to Christian Dior in 2016), he has produced some of the most sublime couture and imagery in Valentino’s glittering history. If you are lucky enough to attend a Maison Valentino couture show at Paris’ grand Hôtel Salomon de Rothschild, the odds are you will be moved to tears. While each garment is imagined by Piccioli, what makes each collection special is its palpable heart: a combination of Piccioli’s vision and that of his beloved team, who create everything by hand. The members of Valentino’s atelier not only own what they do but are also routinely celebrated, appearing on Piccioli’s Instagram (often with their own soundtrack).

A true couturier, Piccioli is also a true Roman who walks the city (or steps out of restaurants for a cigarette) in his mostly black VLTN tees and sneakers. When he finishes his work in the studio, he jumps into a car to go home to Nettuno, an unpretentious beachside suburb where he was raised and now lives with his wife, Simona; his three children, Benedetta, Pietro and Stella; and their dog, Miranda (named after Priestly, of course).