A Closer Look at Valentim Quaresma AW26

 

ZOOT invited photographer Gonçalo XZ to take a closer look at Valentim Quaresma’s AW26 collection, a study of transformation, where masks, metal, and movement blur the line between identity and myth.

 

 

Photography Gonçalo XZ

Behind the scenes film jaypfort

Production and looks curated by Maria Ribeiro

Special thanks to Valentim Quaresma and to ModaLisboa

Lead Makeup Antonia Rosa and team with KIKO

Lead Hair Helena Vaz Pereira and team at Griffe Hairstyle 

Words Rafael K. de Oliveira

 

Getting outside the box is moving against the river’s flow. It pushes us to be something that we’re usually not inside a closed environment.
Valentim’s work appears to embody these entities that we confront ourselves with whenever we try to break the barriers that we face when we’re transforming ourselves.
Shiny, spiked silver headpieces and armors anchor the eye, contrasting dark garments that pull us into the depths of ourselves. This alchemy turns each model into a vessel for an inner journey, a path of self-discovery through our perception of reality.
Through Gonçalo XZ’s lens, the fashion show becomes a bridge to the world beyond. In stark black-and-white, he lifts the veil at Praça do Município, revealing a pantheon of deities crafted by Valentim in the heart of Lisbon.

Analogue
1 roll · 35mm · 36 exposures
Ilford XP2 Plus 400
Leica C2 point‑and‑shoot
5 minutes, 20 models.

Gonçalo XZ

BTS film by jaypfort

Captured immediately after the runway, this behind-the-scenes moment unfolded with urgency and intuition. Each model was invited, one by one, to step outside and extend the narrative beyond the show itself. Without staging or delay, the process embraced spontaneity — a fluid transition from performance to presence. The result is a raw and organic continuation of Valentim’s vision, where the energy of transformation is no longer contained, but lived in real time.


 

 

 

 

 

To boot…

Gonçalo XZ, film director & photographer
@goncaloxz

View more of Valentim Quaresma here on ZOOT.

View Valentim´s full AW26 collection here on ModaLisboa.