Alessandro Michele has chosen Villa Gaia Gandini, on the banks of the Naviglio Grande, as the backdrop for Valentino’s new Cruise 2027 collection.
Along the Naviglio Grande, just a few kilometers from Milan, a Renaissance villa has been transformed into a fashion set for a few days. Its frescoed rooms, 18th-century ceilings, and the balustrade descending to the water tell a story of elegance and history, providing a striking setting for the presentation of the new collection.
Along the banks of the Naviglio Grande, just a few kilometers from Milan, a Renaissance villa becomes a fashion set for a few days. Its frescoed rooms, 18th-century ceilings, and the balustrade leading down to the water tell a story that spans five centuries—one that now intertwines with a contemporary collection.
Valentino’s new Cruise 2027 collection was created within Villa Gaia Gandini, in Robecco sul Naviglio. Alessandro Michele is responsible for the collection’s creative direction, while the campaign imagery was entrusted to photographer Liv Liberg. Hair styling was overseen by Paolo Soffiatti, makeup by Joel Babicci, and manicure by Roberta Rodi.
The collection is showcased by six models: George Anderson, Valery Sergeva, Yar Aguer, Gaetan Bianchi, Dario Tonin, and Khadim Diouff, each bringing the collection to life.
The villa is now owned by the Gandini family, who have preserved it since the second half of the nineteenth century, when the property passed from Decio Garbini to his heirs.
The entrance gate opens onto Via Matteotti through a nineteenth-century exedra, featuring a façade decorated with rusticated horizontal bands and sixteenth-century trophies. From here, visitors enter the main courtyard, built in the Renaissance style, with a portico on three sides and walls painted with grotesques—the decorative motif that originated in Rome during the Renaissance and later spread throughout Italy’s great aristocratic residences.
The villa’s interiors span different styles and historical periods while maintaining a remarkable sense of harmony. The spacious reception rooms are crowned by eighteenth-century passasotto ceilings, while the grisaille decorations are attributed to Andrea Appiani, the Neoclassical painter associated with Napoleon’s court and one of the leading figures of Lombard decorative art in his era.
The façade overlooking the Naviglio Grande features wrought-iron balconies and painted architectural trompe-l’œil frames. The eighteenth-century balustrade, crafted from wrought iron and molera stone, descends to the landing stage staircase—the spot where guests once arrived at the villa directly by water.
Surrounding the residence, a park with two tree-lined avenues and antique statues frames the inner façade of the estate, completing the atmosphere of elegance and historical continuity.
Robecco sul Naviglio thus joins the map of fashion destinations, alongside more famous and widely celebrated historic residences. The choice made by Alessandro Michele reinforces an approach already seen in other projects by Valentino: entrusting a real location with the task of enhancing and deepening the narrative of a collection, without the need to construct an artificial set.
In this way, the villa becomes more than just a backdrop. Its architecture, history, and atmosphere actively contribute to the visual storytelling, creating a dialogue between heritage and contemporary fashion that reflects the spirit of the Cruise 2027 collection.
