High fashion often looks forward. This season, Schiaparelli looked backward, toward absence, loss, and memory. For its Paris couture presentation, the house drew inspiration from one of the most unusual chapters in French cultural history: the jewels of the Louvre that vanished, were scattered, or exist today only through archives and imagination. Rather than reconstructing historical objects literally, Schiaparelli treated the idea of the “lost jewel” as a conceptual starting point. What does it mean when an object that once symbolized power, ritual, or beauty no longer exists in material form, yet continues to shape cultural memory? Couture became the medium to explore that…

 (1932–2026) Valentino Garavani passed away on January 19, 2026, at the age of 93, in Rome. He died at his residence, surrounded by loved ones. With his passing, fashion loses one of its most enduring figures, a designer who shaped elegance for more than half a century and gave Italian couture a singular, global voice. Founded in Rome in 1960, the House of Valentino became synonymous with refinement, discipline, and beauty. Garavani’s work never relied on provocation or noise. Instead, it spoke through proportion, fabric, and a deep respect for craft. His gowns carried a quiet authority, precise in construction…

Leadership changes in luxury often happen quietly, but they usually signal something deeper. Givenchy’s appointment of Amandine Ohayon as its new Chief Executive Officer is one of those moments that deserves attention, not for its drama, but for what it suggests about the Maison’s next phase. Ohayon replaces Alessandro Valenti, who exits after just 18 months to take on a senior role at Christian Dior Couture. On the surface, this looks like a routine internal move within LVMH. In reality, it reflects a careful recalibration of priorities at Givenchy and a broader shift in how the group is managing its…

Ultramarine blue is one of the few colors in art whose value existed long before it touched a canvas. Painters did not discover it by mixing earth or plants. Artisans pulled it from stone. Natural ultramarine comes from lapis lazuli, a semi-precious rock mined mainly in the Sar-e-Sang region of Afghanistan. These mines have supplied artists for thousands of years, making them one of the oldest material sources in art history. This origin alone sets ultramarine apart. It links painting to geology, trade routes, and time itself. Before becoming color, ultramarine was already rare, costly, and difficult to obtain. Ultramarine…

For a long time, Indian whisky sat outside the global luxury conversation. It dominated in volume but not in reputation. When people spoke about great whisky, the references were fixed and familiar: Scotland, Ireland, the United States. India was rarely included, especially at the premium end. Indri marks a shift in that perception. What stands out to me about Indri is not speed or ambition, but intention. It did not try to imitate Scotch or borrow credibility from established regions. Instead, it leaned into its reality: Indian climate, Indian barley, and a slower, more demanding process. Most whisky produced in…