VALENTINO’S SELFIE SEASON
Gwyneth Paltrow, Laura Dern, Naomi Campbell
The fashion house of Valentino was not immune to living in a new world of social distancing. The pandemic and the lockdown that followed made it impossible for the Italian based designer to photograph a typical, highly produced fall/winter 2020 collection. Valentino’s creative director, Pierpaolo Piccioli, adapting to a new reality created #ValentinoEmpathy and took to Instagram to share his vision for the upcoming campaign. “I think that the idea of #ValentinoEmpathy came to my mind because of this. Although I am missing the human touch on the other side, I feel that we’re always connected-and I am not referring to zoom, skype or facetime-I am talking about empathy, we are all made of emotions,” he wrote. “The restrictions caused by this pandemic have helped me to imagine a special project based on empathy and sentiment which are not disappearing due to social distancing.”
Piccioli put together an exclusive cast of acclaimed artists and models and their mission was to take their own photographs wearing Valentino. The list includes Gwyneth Paltrow, Christy Turlington, Laura Dern, Frances McDormand, Naomi Campbell, Rafferty Law, James Turlington, Anwar Hadid, Janet Mock and others.
The advertising campaign was shot where the artists live and the outcome is different from a typical seasonal campaign; it is a collection of portraits. Gwyneth Paltrow was photographed at home, lying on an ottoman, by her husband, Brad Falchuk. Laura Dern’s son, Ellery Harper, took his mother’s picture with the family dog at her feet. Naomi Campbell wearing a long, black Valentino coat, took her own photograph standing in front of a pool.
Italy was the hardest-hit country in Europe during the coronavirus outbreak with nearly 250-thousand cases and just over 35-thousand deaths. The recovery is slow, it’s not over and the damage is significant. Those involved in the #ValentinoEmpathy campaign received no compensation. Instead, Valentino is pledging the money it would have spent on the costly campaign, one million euros, to Rome’s Lazzaro Spallanzani Hospital, the epicenter of Italy’s fight against COVID-19.
In a statement released by Maison Valentino, the brand “wants to ensure that the hub dedicated to COVID-19 will continue to operate effectively, and therefore have a constant spotlight on the situation.”
Piccioli also took part in the campaign. The designer was photographed by his 14-year-old daughter, Stella, standing in their garden and holding a sign with the word: “Empathy.”
