Victorio & Lucchino choose Malaga for the first time to present new collection

Spanish fashion brand Victorio and Lucchino, whose designs include vibrant colours, flowing chiffons and subtle ruffles, are launching their latest collection in Malaga city this Tuesday, 3 September.

The designers behind the name, José Víctor Rodríguez and José Luis Medina del Corral, have worked together for more than three decades to give their creations an unmistakable hyper-feminine Andalusian touch.

The designers are presenting their first collection in Malaga, "a city we adore", as part of the Pasarela Larios fashion event, which is now in its thirteenth year. At the 2022 event the designers were awarded the Alfiler de Oro (Golden Pin) for their career.

The launch is taking place at the Gran Hotel Miramar. SUR talked to them about Clásico Vanguardista (Avant-garde Classic) -as they have named the collection which features pieces for special occasions - about their career and the fashion industry.

- This Tuesday you will be back to present your new collection at our big fashion event: the Pasarela Larios. Why was Malaga chosen?

- For several reasons. We always accept any invitation that the city offers us with such affection. Malaga is a place we adore. On this occasion it will be the first time that we premiere a collection here. Later we will take it to Madrid, Santo Domingo, Puerto Rico, Miami and London. But its debut will be in Malaga. It is part of our beloved Andalucía and its coasts have been our summer resort for many years. We are very fond of it.

- Your connection with the city has always been strong. In fact, in 2022 you received the Alfiler de Oro de la Pasarela Larios for your career. Do you feel that Malaga loves you? Is it a requited love?

- Of course, we feel that Malaga and the people of Malaga love us. Furthermore, the work that the city hall is doing for the city seems to us to be totally exceptional. We talk about its commitment to artistic expression, the opening of museums...Malaga is moving very well, demonstrating an enormous sensitivity towards the creative sphere. It is in full cultural ferment and we applaud it.

- You are one of the most stable couples in the fashion world, both personally and professionally. What is the secret of your success?

- It's difficult to express. I would say it is a matter of destiny. Of the life that wants us together like this and the fruit of the respect and admiration we feel for each other.

- And the recipe for your perfect tandem in such a changing and competitive industry as the textile industry?

- I would say that knowing how to work as a team. We each dream of a collection, we share our ideas and designs, we correct each other... until we reach a final conclusion after many processes. Each new collection goes from drawing on paper to pattern making, tests with models... In this process, there are regrets and changes... It's a long and arduous process but we have a common philosophy and a common harmony. That is the result of Victorio & Lucchino.

- On some occasions you have said that work takes up almost all your time. Balenciaga said it was a killer profession. I know that you always have a notebook on your bedside table to write down any ideas that come up. "Ideas come but ideas go," you say. How demanding and self-sacrificing is fashion design?

- That is the way it is. Ideas disappear and you have to catch them on the fly. That's why we never rest. Any object, colour or texture in nature, even in the most unexpected places outside our work environment, can have this effect on us. The creative spirit comes to the surface and does not wait. Creative people are like that all the time. But it doesn't weigh us down.

- Focusing on the new collection you are presenting in Malaga, what does V&L have in store for the coming seasons?

- This is the collection for 2025, which we have called 'Avant-garde Classic'. In it we wanted to express with absolute freedom our most intimate feelings materialised in fashion. It is about timeless pieces that come from our love for couture and good workmanship with a mixture between the classic essence and the most avant-garde volumes and shapes. The colour palette is forceful and concise, with a clear predominance of black and white, leaving a slight space for smoky greys. In addition, we include notes of glitter with jet and paillettes, but without obviousness. All very subtle and feminine. It is a glamorous collection designed for the night and festive moments, far from the 'low cost' and the easy and cheap clothes that do not allow the imagination to fly.

- How many pieces make up 'Avant-garde Classic' and will they be available online?

In total there are 28 looks. And yes, they will be on sale online. We also have a large clientele outside Spain, in Latin America, where we have been very popular in recent years. These are people with purchasing power who appreciate hard-working pieces. We offer a prêt à porter but bordering on haute couture, with a lot of hand embroidery, a lot of craftsmanship and a lot of work behind it.

- In the era of minimalism, natural fabrics, casual wear, trainers... how do you manage to maintain the roots, the essence of the most traditional and Andalusian fashion while adapting to the new demands of trends? 

- For our taste we are living in a decadent moment. There is a movement in aesthetics that leaves much to be desired. Good taste, craftsmanship, art, quality of fabrics... are not valued. We are heading in that direction, although we are confident that there will be a rebirth and a resurgence. In the meantime, we are sticking to our line with noble fabrics that make us vibrate and produce that special sensation. We are committed to designs that fly, dream and excite. We continue to strive for beauty.

Flamenco is in your DNA, although the latest collections in a more subtle way. How do you continue to draw on our traditions?

- They are stages. It's true that sometimes we lean towards deeper roots, but deep down, that aftertaste, that essence of ours, always remains. In our latest works, more than as a matter of course, the tradition resides in that touch of femininity, that desire to make women as beautiful as we can. It's a subtlety.

Andalucía is still your cradle and your great inspiration, where do you find it?

- In Andalucía as a whole. It is a vast land that offers us that feeling, that way of life, that sweetness, that love for festivities, which is palpable and constantly evolving. We drink from our idiosyncrasy and our way of being. We feel very Andalusian and we drink from that source.

- With your background, what advice would you give to a new designer starting out in the industry?

- That they acquire a lot of fashion culture, that they know the history dressing, that they learn from the masters.... But above all, they must have a huge dose of humility. No egos. We must never stop feeling like we are just starting out. With the same nerves and fears in each collection. That makes you grow, never believing that you have reached the ceiling.

- You have worked for cinema, theatre and dance. You have perfumes, glasses, costume jewellery, a book, a museum..., is there any unfinished business?

- Thanks to God we have touched many areas and all of them have given us great satisfaction. Among them, a museum in Palma del Río in a spectacular 16th century convent. What we would love to do - and we haven't got there yet - is an opera, and if it were Carmen that would be the best (laughs).