For his latest Haute Couture collection for @Valentino, Alessandro Michele abandoned the traditional runway in favor of a peep-show. Guests were seated facing backwards before turning to glimpse the collection as models appeared within a circular white space. The result was an extraordinary, jaw-dropping collection that articulates the conceptual framework of “Specula Mundi,” a meditation on vision, temporality, and the conditions of the gaze. Valentino Garavani passed away just days before the Haute Couture show, as the collection was in its final stages. In a letter to Mr. Garavani, #AlessandroMichele wrote, “A radiant presence guides us, one that has shaped a space where creative vision could flourish and become, for all of us working in fashion, both touchstone and horizon.”