Valentino Couture Painting

This work is created with thick and richly pigmented oil paints on canvas, ready to hang with a small strip frame. The painting had a thin later of pinks and red in oil underneath. Once that dried I began applying blacks and graphite grey colors which finally I etched into to reveal my inspiration with text on the surface. Ships rolled I was so absolutely moved by the recent Valentino show at Paris Fashion Week I turned right to the canvas to try to capture the emotions. The collection created by Pierpaolo Piccioli were so vibrant and so stunningly feminine and gorgeous. There was a fabulous contrast of colors and you could easily tell that there was some floral inspiration behind the collection, with each of these vivid gowns being named after their inspiration. There is a smaller piece similar to this I created first as a study and that then led to this piece. I alternate between having the show on the screen while painting and my playlist. I wanted to share this quote by Pierpaolo Piccioli, shows the significance of the show (which included 43 black female models).... " I found this quote inspiring as well as the significance of the work, so feminine yet completely strong and powerful, add 43 black models to walk down the runway and, well....." Couture is a dream. Although it celebrates uniqueness, which is a synonym for diversity, it has always meant to be for white people. From the Forties, the pioneering magazines Ebony and Jet, have been making a great effort to give black beauty the deserved dignity. Franca published the Black Issue, ten years ago, demonstrating to be a courageous woman and a real visionary. To have a Roman brand represented by Black Beauty goes against all the xenophobia in Italy and, hopefully, all over the world. With this Valentino Haute Couture collection, my hope is to deliver the message, as strong as I can. Change the aesthetic and you change the perception of people more than any slogan. Everyone is allowed to dream, this is the inclusivity of Haute Couture. "