The Tamesis
Valentino Garavani, the Roman couturier who launched his own label in 1960 and became world-famous for dressing European royalty, the First Lady of the United States and today’s stars, has died at his home in Rome. He is 93 years old.
Valentino became one of the key architects of late 20th century glamor with its rigorous pattern making, signature hue of poppy red and attention to feminine details such as bows, ruffles, lace and embroidery. Val’s coterie, often referred to as “Val’s girls,” included Elizabeth Taylor, Audrey Hepburn and Sophia Loren. Jackie Kennedy wore a white Valentino gown to her wedding to Aristotle Onassis, and decades later the designer dressed Jennifer Lopez at the 2003 Oscars in the mint green gown he had made for the former first lady in 1967. In 2001, Julia Roberts starred in ” Erin Brockovich Wearing a black and white vintage dress by Valentino.
In 2009, the designer was the subject of a documentary directed by Matt Tyrnauer, Valentino: The Last EmperorThe documentary follows the designer, his business partner throughout his career, Giancarlo Giammetti, and his entourage two years before his retirement. In the film, Valentino tells reporters: “I know what women want, and they want to be beautiful.” Those ten words sum up the aesthetic that made him a multimillionaire.
Valentino retired in 2008 with a lavish three-day celebration in Rome and has barely disappeared from public view in the years since. For many seasons he sat in the front row of the Hôtel de Rothschild in Paris, admiring the latest collections from creative directors Pierpaolo Piccioli and Maria Grazia Chiuri, who moved to Christian Dior in 2016. Valentino was so moved by Piccioli’s Fall 2018 Haute Couture collection that he received a standing ovation and tears rolling down his tanned cheeks.
When Garavani isn’t applauding the designers who carry on his label, he can often be seen on Instagram hosting glamorous parties at his French estate, Wideville, or on his yacht, TM Blue One, rarely accompanied by his pack of pugs.
Valentino Clemente Ludovico Garavani was born on May 11, 1932 in Voghera, Italy. He decided early on to pursue a career in design and attended the Academy of Milan, where he studied fashion and French. To pursue his ambitions, Garavani moved to Paris at the age of 17, where he studied at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts and the Société des Haute Couture de Paris. After graduation, he assisted Greek designer Jean Dessés, known for his pleated evening gowns, and French designer Guy Laroche, who has a sporty aesthetic.
After working for a year with Princess Irene Galitzine, the famous beauty who popularized elegant evening gowns, Garavani started his own business with the support of his father and a family friend, establishing his own fashion house in Rome’s Via Condotti around 1959. “That’s a high fashion house,” Giammetti explained in an interview that he met Garavani soon after. Vanity Fair. “I say that in French because it was very similar to what he saw in Paris… Everything was already very grand. Models were flown in from Paris for his first fashion show. Fashion in Italy was very limited at that time. There were some good designers, but only a few.”
With Giammetti by his side, Valentino became one of the best players, although within a year he was facing bankruptcy. He blamed his “champagne taste” for this, and the two soon moved out of Via Condotti and into a smaller space in a 16th-century palace in Via Gregoriana.
