Haunting music greeted drizzled-on VIP guests, including singer Janelle Monáe, who braved torrential rains in Paris to get to Valentino’s experimental fashion show near the Invalides monument on Sunday.<br /><br />VALENTINO EXPERIMENTS WITH SUBTLE KINK<br /><br />Valentino’s designer Pierpaolo Piccioli has been in an experimental mood of late.<br /><br />In Sunday’s ready-to-wear show at Paris Fashion Week, this was more than apparent as the Italian-born designer dramatically departed from the house’s oft-angelic signature designs. It was a nice change. In the place of purity, this season was subtle kink.<br /><br />See-through black mesh gowns followed sheeny thigh-high black leather boots, while split-leg bustier gowns bore inches of flesh and some visible nipples.<br /><br />Even the Renaissance-style capes, a Valentino touchstone for ages, were crafted for this fall in a provocative sheeny black on a model with dark eye make-up, stomping black wedge boots and long blood-red leather gloves. This angel had fallen from heaven long ago, the show seemed to say. <br /><br />Aside from the kinky elements, there were lots great fashion-forward plays on shape. A black scarf insert fell off the back of one shoulder with an off-kilter air, like the single fallen wing of a dark angel.<br /><br />Follow STYLE on:<br />https://www.scmp.com/magazines/style<br />https://www.facebook.com/scmpstyle<br />https://www.instagram.com/scmp_style<br />https://www.twitter.com/scmp_style<br />https://www.youtube.com/c/SCMPStyle<br />https://www.dailymotion.com/scmp_style
