Lisbon's MAAT – the Museum of Art, Architecture and Technology – is currently hosting an exhibition that brings together the sculptural world of Portuguese artist Joana Vasconcelos and the haute couture of Italian designer Valentino Garavani. Titled VENUS – Valentino Garavani through the eyes of Joana Vasconcelos, the show runs until 22 February and offers visitors a rare chance to see how two distinct creative universes can converse.
The project is the result of a collaboration between the Valentino Garavani and Giancarlo Giammetti Foundation – Giammetti being the designer's lifelong business and personal partner – and Vasconcelos, who has designed a visitor journey in which her own works are interwoven with garments from Valentino's archive. The Portuguese sculptor told Euronews that she wanted to highlight the diversity of Valentino's output, from his intricate embroidery to the wide range of fabrics he employed, and how he used these materials to create an "idyllic woman, a goddess-like woman".
Beyond the iconic red
Vasconcelos had full access to the designer's archive to shape the exhibition. She deliberately chose pieces that go beyond the cliché of "Valentino Red", the colour most associated with the brand's ideals of power, passion and sensuality. Even so, the show includes a particularly emblematic example of that trademark hue, demonstrating how the designer's signature shade remains a touchstone.
At the press presentation, Vasconcelos explained that the exhibition grew from the "idea of luxury" that gave rise to Valkyrie Venus, a large-scale textile sculpture that occupies the central position in the show. "It was from this work that the exhibition was born, in which we play on the paradox between the domestic and luxury," she said. "The woman at home, the woman in intimacy, the woman who is not seen; and the woman in public space, the woman who becomes a goddess because she wears a Valentino dress." The sculpture itself incorporates the textures and colours of the garments that inspired it.
This apparent contradiction between the private and the public is a recurring theme throughout the exhibition. Vasconcelos has designed a route through MAAT's spaces where visitors encounter some of her most iconic works alongside new creations, all in dialogue with Valentino's designs. The result is a layered experience that invites reflection on how clothing shapes identity and how domestic objects can carry unexpected meaning.
For Vasconcelos, the process of selecting the dresses and connecting them with her sculptures was not a challenge but rather "very dynamic and fun". One example is the "Ironing Room", a section she devised for dresses that "cannot be ironed", displayed alongside an artistic composition in which an ironing board and iron take centre stage. "So it was this strange way of life that led me to create this exhibition," she explained, describing it as a "game between dresses that are worn only on certain occasions of perfection and luxury" and life "in the domestic sphere, which does not include that kind of elements".
Throughout the route, visitors encounter feather dusters, pots, cutlery and other household utensils, which Vasconcelos uses to evoke the everyday world that contrasts with the glamour of haute couture. The exhibition is an adapted version of a project originally shown in Rome at PM23, the cultural space founded by Valentino and Giammetti, where it ran until 19 July 2026.
The Lisbon show is part of a broader trend of fashion and art crossovers in European museums. Earlier this year, Robert Wun's couture collection debuted in Paris, and Steven Passaro's digital approach to couture has also drawn attention. Meanwhile, Casa Batlló in Barcelona uses AI to reveal links between Gaudí, Miró and Gomis, showing how technology is reshaping the way we experience art and design.
For those unable to travel to Lisbon, the exhibition's catalogue and online resources offer a glimpse into the dialogue between Vasconcelos and Valentino. But for now, the physical encounter at MAAT remains the most compelling way to experience this fusion of domestic life and haute couture.
