Maison Valentino has decided the DeVain bag deserves its own digital universe. Not a campaign, not a lookbook, but a full-on creative experiment. The brand invited nine artists to reinterpret the bag through their own visual logic. Five of them are debuting now; the rest arrive in early December like the second drop in a limited-edition series.
This isn’t about aesthetics for aesthetics’ sake. It’s Valentino asking, “What happens when fashion stops behaving like fashion and starts behaving like art on the internet?”
The Bag Behind the Story
The DeVain was introduced by Alessandro Michele. It is a soft clutch with a slightly undone confidence. It comes in 27 versions, ranging from monochrome nappa to metallic finishes, denim, raffia, shearling, crystals, florals, velvet, and the sort of embroidery that reminds you Valentino knows how to do “extra” without blinking. You can even personalize a leather tag with your initials, because nothing says 2025 like turning a luxury bag into a digital-era diary entry.
The First Five Artists
The first group includes Thomas Albdorf, Enter The Void, Paul Octavious, Albert Planella, and Tina Tona. Each artist lets the DeVain spark a completely different direction of storytelling.
How Each Artist Reimagines the DeVain
Thomas Albdorf works in the studio, multiplying the bag across mirrored surfaces until it becomes a sculptural puzzle. Somewhere between reflection and illusion.
Enter The Void builds a surreal world that blends dream logic with digital glitch: an underwater desert hotel where bags and fish drift around like they’re on their own schedule.
Paul Octavious pulls from classical portraiture but animates it digitally, turning the DeVain into a character that moves between 16th-century formality and modern screen culture.
Albert Planella leans into AI and cinematic emotion, creating a dream-state narrative where the bag slips into different forms.
Tina Tona goes full mixed media. Collage, animation, movement, colour, unfolding the DeVain from every angle with high-energy precision.
Together, they create a version of the DeVain that is designed to be interpreted.
Digital Tools, Real Intent
Some of the visuals, especially from Enter The Void, Paul Octavious, and Albert Planella — were created with AI. Valentino makes a point to say all model imagery was produced with informed consent, which is basically the new fine print of digital art.
What This Project Says About Valentino Now
With this project, Valentino is essentially saying that fashion doesn’t stop at the edge of the runway. It evolves, morphs, and sometimes floats underwater next to a fish in a digital hotel.
The DeVain becomes a case study in how a luxury house can play inside the messy, experimental space of online creativity and still feel grounded.