It goes without saying that Sarah Burton has plenty of experience when it comes to dressing women—twenty-six years with the House of Alexander McQueen, to be exact, before she moved in a new direction. Without going off on a tangent, the point remains that Burton understands the complexities of women and their desires. This was evident in her F/W26 collection for Givenchy, where she didn’t have only one muse in mind.
Rather than imposing a uniform, Burton used her expertise to offer a wardrobe as varied as the women who wear it.
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Female Fantasy (And Reality)
Where Burton’s earlier Givenchy was about learning the language of the atelier, her latest work is her finally speaking from the heart—deeply personal and instinctive. The templates of her previous seasons softened into a generous arsenal of tailoring, ranging from pinstriped suits to delicate pieces.
Diversity was the clear objective, with each look catering to a distinct personality. While coats and capes anchored the collection, reverse dressing provided a whimsical shift in perspective. Animal motifs hinted at the lives of stylish socialites, appearing alongside pantsuits and dresses designed for everyone from the conservative to the daring. Milliner Stephen Jones’ silken shirts wrapped the models’ heads to transform them into subjects of a painting.
And speaking of paintings, one specific floral number reportedly drew inspiration from the art of Filipino artist Olan Ventura.
By the time the final looks unspooled, it was obvious that Sarah Burton is designing for you, and for every version of the woman you wish to be when you get dressed in the morning.
Photos: GIVENCHY
Frequently Asked Questions
Givenchy F/W26, designed by Sarah Burton, is built around the idea of a wardrobe for every kind of woman. The collection spans pinstriped suits, tailored coats, capes, animal motifs, and delicate dresses — prioritizing diversity of personality over a single unified aesthetic.
Sarah Burton is a British fashion designer with 26 years at Alexander McQueen — 13 of those as creative director — before joining Givenchy. Her F/W26 collection marks a shift toward a more personal and instinctive design language, moving away from the structured templates of her earlier Givenchy seasons.
A floral look in Givenchy F/W26 was reportedly inspired by the work of Filipino artist Olan Ventura. The reference places Filipino creative influence within a major Paris Fashion Week collection — a notable moment for the local art and fashion community.
Key elements included coats and capes as the collection’s anchors, reverse dressing as a conceptual device, animal motifs suggesting a stylish socialite figure, and head-wrapping silken shirts created by milliner Stephen Jones — giving each look the quality of a painted portrait.
Burton’s earlier Givenchy work was described as learning the house’s design language. F/W26 reads as a departure — more instinctive and personally expressive, offering a generous range of silhouettes rather than a prescribed uniform, designed to reflect the full spectrum of how women want to dress.
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