Taking Flight: Viktor & Rolf Spring/Summer '26

For Spring/Summer 2026, Viktor & Rolf rebuilds freedom and childhood through a timeless symbol of escape and transcendence: the kite. Presented during Paris Fashion Week, Diamond Kite treats the airborne sculpture as both blueprint and belief system that shapes the silhouettes, movement and very spirit of the collection.

The transformative power of elevation shows up in the work’s central tension—concept versus construction, fantasy versus finish. The designers frame the collection as “playful and experimental,” where couture craftsmanship meets inventive engineering, and theatricality is grounded by pieces that are still built to move.

Visually, Diamond Kite runs on duality. Dense black forms—severe, almost monumental—act as a graphic base, a crisp outline for silhouette. Then the air breaks open: detachable panniers, collars, capes, and sleeves arrive as wisps of colored tulle and organza, like a sudden scribble of optimism across a disciplined page. “We go back to black so often because it’s the best color for silhouettes,” the designers note in a press statement—here, black becomes the canvas that makes every flash of color feel even more electric.

The opening looks hits that balance immediately: voluminous drapes and balloon-like pleats are sweet in shape, strict in posture. From there, the looks deepen into couture architecture: floor-length gazar gowns with sculptural necklines and shaped trains, sleeves and skirts lifted, pinched, and redirected like fabric caught mid-flight.

The kite becomes literal in the body. A close-fitting black crepe dress forms a sharp V-shaped line at the shoulder; another is fastened with small buttons and opens into a full skirt via godet panels, dragging behind like a shadow with momentum. Elsewhere, the house’s signatures—bows, collars, and pleats—are used as anchoring devices instead of decoration.

The “kite” finale is inspired by an iconic Kate Bush album cover, an image that has shadowed the brand since its earliest days. The last look is suspended between earth and sky, flight and stillness: a closing thesis on couture’s oldest promise, that clothing can turn imagination into form.

Completed with shoes by Christian Louboutin and jewelry by Elie Top, Diamond Kite frames couture as escapism without denial, showcasing garments that lift the wearer above reality while still reflecting it back with unnerving clarity.