Maison Valentino presents its Pre-Fall 2026 campaign featuring musician Sombr, under the direction of Alessandro Michele, with imagery captured by Johnny Dufort. The project unfolds inside the palazzo of Cy Twombly in Bassano in Teverina, a residence that shaped decades of the artist’s work. Sombr moves through a space marked by history where architecture remains present in every room.
AD CAMPAIGNS
Twombly acquired the palazzo in 1975 after guidance from art collector Giorgio Franchetti. He withdrew from city life and used the residence as a private environment for work and reflection. The limestone structure held a quiet rhythm, opening only to a small circle of collaborators. Several of his key works developed within these walls. The site now houses the Iris Foundation, which supports cultural initiatives, while Twombly’s presence continues through the structure and atmosphere of the space.
The campaign draws from a visual reference that connects to the house’s history. In 1968, photographer Henry Clarke shot Valentino Garavani’s white collection for Vogue inside Twombly’s Roman apartment, shared with Tatiana Franchetti. That moment established a link between the maison and the artist. The current campaign returns to another Twombly residence, using the setting to extend that connection.
The 1968 photographs placed figures within structured compositions that aligned closely with architecture. The new campaign shifts away from that order. Gaze, and fabric disrupt the space, while color alters the reading of each room. Movement reshapes how the body interacts with its surroundings, turning the interior into an active setting. Michele frames Valentino as a site where past and present operate together, using Twombly’s palazzo to express this direction through architecture, image, and motion.
