Men I Admire: Giambattista Valli

Isn't the part where he gets so excited and ecstatic over the right draping just so adorable? 

I've always liked and admired Giambattista Valli. He is always so self-composed and very elegant. Unlike other designers who tries to find the next big thing, he is always consistent and sticks to what he knows best: quiet elegance. In this age where Lady Gaga and her outrageous fashions are worshiped on the streets and the internet (let's not talk about Ke$ha altogether), it's hard to find your ground and stick to it when it is just so overwhelmingly easy to conform to norm. Giambattista Valli, unlike other "haute couturiers" and labels out there, has carved out somewhat of a niche for himself. He truly embraces the "less is more" concept of things. Though his clothes looks simple at a first glance, it is evident that there is much thought behind every cut, every thread sewn. He and Thomas Maier are perhaps, the most tasteful designers that really pay attention to the details en particulière.

On the Giambattista Valli woman:

"She’s a woman who is very balanced with her femininity. It’s not about being strong or not. It’s about being in balance with yourself. But you know, what I really love — and is going to be always my message — is to be part of the happy moments of this woman. Even with the recession, there will be happy moments. Whether she’s loved, gets married or she goes to a wedding, I would love to have complicity with this woman in this moment."

I no longer really like Haute Couture, especially when now it's so removed from its original context. In fact, the haute couture collections going on right now are more garish and gimmicky than anything and are often just a platform to raise brand prestige and to hawk off profit-generating accessories.

I suppose Mr. Valli shares the same sentiments as I do:

“Haute couture today is used to support an image — it’s not what it used to be when I worked with Roberto Capucci and Emanuel Ungaro, when there were wonderful women coming to be dressed for daytime.” 

Though I would like to note that other brands out there doing couture are miles ahead of Emanuel Ungaro which has fallen far from grace with its lowly status cemented when it decided to hire Lindsay Lohan to assist with one of the collections a few seasons ago.

Alas, I am not the right age to wear such clothing out and about around campus. Though once I get past my 20s, you bet I will.

 Images taken from Style.com and quotes taken from the NYTimes.