Pierpaolo Piccioli’s debut couture show for Balenciaga took place at the Cité Internationale Universitaire de Paris during Fashion Week. The collection was presented in an unconventional location for the House—not in a Parisian salon, but under the open sky of a university campus—symbolizing Piccioli’s desire to bring high fashion closer to real life. The central question of whether Piccioli would maintain the irony and provocation typical of Gvasalia’s tenure was answered: the collection was executed flawlessly, yet it spoke the familiar language of his own aesthetic.
Piccioli joined the house in July 2025 after more than 25 years at Valentino, where he created over a hundred collections and established the brand as a symbol of romantic couture. In his new role, he immediately consulted the archives of Cristóbal Balenciaga, a master whose work had inspired him long before his appointment to the House.
While drawing from the archives, he infused the collection with his own signature elements: saturated colors, fluid draping, architectural shoulders, and emotional romanticism. Voluminous gazar silk gowns, feathered headpieces, and embroidered capes referenced the founder’s heritage, but the color palette and sense of freedom felt more like a continuation of the designer’s work at Valentino than a dialogue with the provocative direction of his predecessor, Demna Gvasalia, who led the house for a decade.
Piccioli offers pieces that invite wearing rather than just discussion, garments that clearly reveal the hand of a master. They are intended for those who value true craftsmanship and are unafraid of color, choosing beauty and freedom over shock or scandal.
After years of Balenciaga defining beauty through subtext, the House is making a turn—returning to the traditional understanding of couture as the art of form, sculpture, and skill. Piccioli is not attempting to compete with his predecessor; instead, he is redefining the house's identity by offering a version that is softer, more "human," and more attentive to the body and the personality.
This is not a revolution, but a conscious reorientation rooted in deep respect for Balenciaga’s legacy and the designer’s own creative journey.
