Dear Shaded Viewers,
For his Fall-Winter 2026 couture collection, Peet Dullaert looks toward the enduring relationship between art, craftsmanship, and the women who give meaning to creation. Inspired by Rembrandt van Rijn’s celebrated portraits of Marten Soolmans and Oopjen Coppit, jointly acquired by the Louvre Museum and the Rijksmuseum and currently exhibited at the Louvre, the designer explores how each era defines beauty through its own materials, innovations, and ideals.
Photos by coolk8girl
Rather than recreating historical dress, Dullaert approaches the paintings as a reflection on presence, individuality, and the passage of time. The collection translates the quiet authority of the portraits into contemporary silhouettes, where traditional couture techniques meet the realities of modern life. “Every generation leaves behind its own portrait. Museums preserve them in paint; haute couture preserves them in movement,” explains Dullaert. “Every generation defines luxury through the innovations of its own time.”
Photos by Giovanni Fiorio, Launchmetrics
The collection revisits centuries of textile expertise through a contemporary perspective. The robe à la française and its iconic Watteau pleat are reimagined alongside interpretations of 1920s glamour, while velours de panne, lace coupé, macramé, and hand-executed silk embroidery reveal a deep appreciation for the history of craftsmanship and cultural exchange. Colour plays a central role, recalling a time when rare pigments were valued beyond their material worth for the knowledge, labour, and artistry required to create them.
House Muse Anastasia opens the presentation with a sense of independence and self-possession, while the finale is carried by model and icon Jade Parfitt, whose unforgettable imagery from the 1990s remains part of fashion’s collective memory.
Photos by Giovanni Fiorio, Launchmetrics
During the show, Chinese actor Yunqi also joined the cast, bringing another perspective to Dullaert’s vision of contemporary elegance. Through these encounters between past and present, Peet Dullaert proposes couture as a living portrait, one that continues to evolve through craftsmanship, creativity, and the individuals who embody it.
Yours digitally,
Pedro
