Valentino's new creative director is Alessandro Michele
Almost a year and a half after he departed from a different Italian fashion house, Alessandro Michele has found a new home in the Italian fashion brand Valentino.
The Guardian reports that Alessandro will be taking over from Pierpaolo Piccioli, who was the creative director of Valentino for 16 years, from 2008 to this year. Pierpaolo stepping down from his position was just announced last week, with a joint statement with the fashion house.
In a post on his Instagram, Alessandro wrote that it was an “incredible honour” to take on the new role and that he feels “the immense joy and the huge responsibility” of stewarding the Valentino brand.
Before taking on this new role, Alessandro Michele served as creative director at Gucci for seven years, attracting a celebrity clientele that included Lady Gaga, Beyoncé, Billie Eilish, Dakota Johnson, and Jodie Turner-Smith.
Alessandro also started a collaboration with Harry Styles back in June of 2022, a collection named Gucci HA HA HA.
“It's a little experiment I did with Harry, a friend of mine and it belongs to the space we share - the passion for clothes and things,” he said.
The collection featured pajamas with bear, squirrel, and elephant designs, as well as flared suits reminiscent of “the image of English lords and eccentric people we love.”
Alessandro Michele was replaced by Italian designer Sabato De Sarno, who actually spent 13 years of his career working for Valentino's design studio.
Alessandro is the latest big-name creative appointment made in the fashion world over the past few months. Back in February last year, musician and singer-songwriter Pharrell Williams was named the new creative director for Louis Vuitton's menswear division, a position held by Virgil Abloh until his passing.
