Chanel Couture Credits: ©Launchmetrics/spotlight What is the role of couture collections in 2026? It is a question designers seemed to be grappling with this haute couture season. Couture remains the pinnacle of luxury, yet in a world in flux, recent seasons have sometimes rendered its ostentatious creations more vanity project than wearable proposition. This season, however, some voices – both new and established – reminded audiences to return the focus to the clothes themselves, while simultaneously inviting a sense of the fantastical. A new perspective A return to the clothes, however, did not mean a loss of splendor. Just days after the fashion world bid final farewell to Valentino Garavani, creative director Alessandro Michele presented his second couture collection for the Roman fashion house. The opening look of the collection, titled Specula Mundi, was a plunging batwing gown in striking crimson – a clear tribute to Valentino and his iconic shade of carmine, first introduced in his debut collection in 1959. Yet it was not the garments alone that set the tone. It was the manner in which they were presented, signalling a shift in how couture is consumed. Valentino Couture Credits: ©Launchmetrics/spotlight Viewed on a hanger, Michele’s clothes were a lavish mix of 1920s and 1970s glamour, gowns fit for showgirls and eccentrics alike. But the presentation itself transformed the experience. The collection was not shown on a runway, instead, it was displayed through twelve Kaiserpanoramas, compelling the audience to observe each creation through individual peepholes. “The image doesn’t…
