For as long as Calvin Klein has existed, it has been a house known for its mastery of elegance, sensuality, and the art of paring things back to amplify the body at its core. Continuing this legacy through a modern lens, Calvin Klein Collection’s Autumn 2026 outing under Veronica Leoni is a study in hedonism and an obsessive endeavour in the pursuit of beauty.
A brand rich in history, Leoni demonstrates her referential intent through a deep dive into the archives. “I wanted to refine my expression of elegance and style in the spirit of how the brand defined them in the late 1970s and early 1980s—with intimacy and a particular attention to form and the body—to evoke a sense of power and pleasure that is unmistakably Calvin Klein,” she says.
Leoni frames the season around essential wardrobe archetypes—suits, trench coats, blousons, coats, and dresses—infused with sharp minimalism and untouchable sophistication that echoes her archival research. Styled with stilettos, flats, boots, clutches, duffel bags, and tone-on-tone gloves for a polished, sensual attitude, while hedonistic qualities manifest through power suits and leather trenches.
Denim, a cornerstone of the brand, takes pride of place via a reimagined 1976 archive look: a head-to-toe denim suit slipped under elongated coats, with the original handwritten logo embroidered on an aviator jacket and a checked trench.
Throughout the silhouettes, lines stay high and straight, with exquisitely controlled tailoring that skims close to the body. Backless surprises and sleeveless variations introduce measured tension, while meticulously constructed dresses reveal clean, almost architectural backs that expose their internal structure. Collars punctuate the collection: crisp white versions, tougher biker styles, and shearling collars that gradually swell into a full shearling coat.
Fundamental to keeping minimalism modern and refreshing, Leoni leans into tactility. Texture and colour sketch a story in neutrals and muted shades, lit up by flashes of mandarin and Bordeaux, with fabrics spanning dry tailoring wools to ribbed jersey, fluid velvet, bonded satin, cottons, grosgrain, spazzolato, and both opaque and transparent leathers.
While the brand thrives on understatement, Leoni’s third collection builds to a finale of sorts. Two billowing gowns closed the show—a potential distraction from the clean-cut world she’s crafting at Calvin Klein. Regardless, they provided a light, refreshing end, mirroring the light-filled Hudson Yards venue.
