Website: www.valentino.it
Valentino is a designer who has successfully combined the couture of Paris and Italy together, using French embroidery along with Italian fabrics and workmanship. He has established himself as one of the greatest designers, with a very beautiful and feminine style.
1932 Valentino Garavani was born, in Voghera, North of Milan, Italy, son of an electrical appliance store owner. He grew up drawing fashions and wanted to study art and design.
1949 He moved to Paris, from Rome after taking French
lessons. He studied at the Ecole des Beaux Arts and Chambre Syndicale de la Couture Parisienne.
He first found apprentice jobs, with Jean Desses
where he used to help Jacqueline de Ribes sketch
her dress ideas. Then he joined Guy Laroche.
1959 He returned to Rome, and opened a small atelier. 1960 He moved to the via Condotti and was discovered by the celebrities who used to visit Rome during the "Dolce Vita" . He began to be called the Golden Boy of Italian couture.
1962 He presented his first collection at Florence's Pitti Palace in a fashion showcase attended by foreign buyers and journalists, to wild acclaim.
He presented his famous "no colour" collection
with models and escorts dressed in various shades
of white, cream, chalk, sand, ecru and beige.
At this time, psychedelic colours were in ascendant,
Valentino's collection astounded everyone with it's
subtlety and power. This provoked a binge of
all-white clothing throughout fashion.
He won the Nieman Marcus award for his "no
colour" collection.
1968 His collection included lace encrusted stockings, embroidered in feathers, embossed in chain, decorated with flowers.
Valentino designed the dress which Jacqueline Kennedy wore when she married Aristotle Onassis. It was a white lace mini-dress seen around the world. She was one of his regular clients, and wore his clothes on many occasions.
1969 He opened his first pret-a-porter (ready-to-wear)
in Milan and later another in Rome.
In the 60's Valentino presented dresses with a Gypsy look, with full skirts, lavish embroidery, mixed prints and knotted fringes.
In the 70's he used his initial "V" for the first time, on his products, seams and pockets.
Valentino took a partner, Giancarlo Giammetti, whose entreprenerial genius led to expansion and success of the house.
1980 The most dramatic Italian silhouette emphasized the waist with full double skirts, graduated in tiers, and stiffened peplums. At Valentino, sleeves were puffed and ruffled to balance tight bodices. He produced a Baroque collection which played with the contrast of thick black braid or white lace against jewels. The blouson jacket was the alternative to the baggy double-breasted jacket. Valentino showed them in sporty checks, black georgette with lace collars and green suede.
1983 Valentino brought out his children's line.
1987 Valentino continues his expansion with a chain of boutiques in the U.S.A. and Japan.
He launched his line for younger people, and called it Oliver after his beloved Pug dog.
1989 Sees the opening of the "Academie Valentino a cultural centre located near to Valentino's atelier in Rome. This centre is for Art exhibitions and cultural activities.
1990 Valentino, along with his partner Giametti create IIFE an association for support of AIDS related patients to benefit from the Academie Valentino centre earnings.
1990-1991 Valentino celebrated 30 years in couture, and there was a gala celebration.
1992 Valentino made this burgundy velvet dress with scalloped panelled bodice and embroidered skirt for Princess Diana who wore it for a visit to Hong Kong and to a function at the Barbicon, in London.
1995 Valentino's evening gown from his Spring/Summer 1963 collection called "Optimista" made of Silk faille and silk organza, was included in the 1995 Exhibition of Italian postwar art and culture at the Guggenheim Museum in New York.
1995 In June of this year, Marie Chantal Miller wed Crown Prince Pavlos of Greece. Valentino made the bride's wedding gown as well as 62 outfits for other family members and guests.
In 1998, Valentino sold his company to Holding di Partecipazioni Industriali (HdP) for $ 300 million and remains as Designer only. He said it is because he wants the Valentino name to continue even after him.
In 2002, HdP sold Valentino to Marzotto, another Italian luxury goods group.
Valentino is the favourite to make celebrity wedding gowns. In May 2002 Claudia Schiffer, the supermodel, married Matthew Vaughn an English film producer, in an ivory silk bridal gown made by Valentino. He was one of the honoured guests at the wedding.
VALENTINO'S STYLE
Valentino loves dresses - Valentino means dresses and has for nearly 40 years. Valentino's dresses are more dreamy, more romantic, more youthful and impeccably made. That's the charm and mastery of Valentino.
The designer says " I do not make dresses, because it is the
season to make dresses. I make dresses because a dress fits
the new picture of a very modern way to dress - you can wear
a dress with a jacket, coat or a sweater over it. You can wear
a fine sweater under a dress. I don't think there is anything
quite so nice. The dress is far more useful than just another
wool suit."
Valentino explains that a dress should have very little detail and
notes that he is focusing his design energy on creating a most
perfect bias cut. "I am a romantic designer" he says, "I like
women flirting and seducing men. The bias cut gives a certain
sexiness without being too showy or too fitted."
And what does the Master Dress Maker say about the future?
"The fact that young girls wear dresses, even long vintage ones,
is a good sign that dresses will take over."
But Valentino does not make only dresses. He can soften the edges of a razor-sharp blazer by coupling it with a ballooning skirt or a sweatshirt hood. He elevates the sweater's status by showing a plaid knitted one with a skirt of contrasting textured lame-figured chiffon. A tee-shirt becomes a dress when made up with silk and has diamonds at the sleeves.
Flowers intrigue Valentino and he has used them in prints, in silk, and for petal shapes of bodices or skirts. He says there should be a minimum of detail, but he does put in a lot of bows on his garments, at the waist or on a shoulder.
He is truly the only designer who combines French embroidery and impeccable taste, with Italian fabrics, workmanship and glamour.
HIS CLIENTELE
He has dressed a great many of the beautiful and famous women of the world, including Jacqueline Kennedy Onnasis, Joan Collins, Princess Grace of Monaco, Gloria Guinness, Elizabeth Taylor, Audrey Hepburn, Sophia Loren, etc.
In addition to the elegant ladies of yesteryear, Valentino also dresses the ladies of today. Jennifer Lopez was married in September 2001 in California, wearing a Valentino wedding gown.
Ready-to-Wear
Valentino presented his Spring/Summer 2003 collection during the Paris Fashion Week in October 2002 which was very well received. This is an outfit from that collection.
He is the master of the voluptuous evening gown, but this collection was different. He presented a military/sports theme, in army camoflage and khaki green, to match an Andy Warhol backdrop. He had ultra-brief short skirts, and lots of pants.
Haute Couture - Spring/Summer 2003
In January 2003, Valentino presented his Haute Couture collection for Spring/Summer 2003. His beautiful workmanship produced evening gowns made up of flowers, which looked like origami of petals anchored with a jewel. One can be seen on the right. The show had an all-white opening, including tailored dresses with charmeuse drapery at the midriff. Valentino is the standard bearer of clothes that women sigh for and die for.
Ready-to-Wear, Fall/Winter 2003
Valentino presented his Fall collection during Paris Fashion Week in March 2003. An outfit from the show is shown on the left.
Concentric circles of fur on the sleeve of a shapely jacket were stunning. An evening bodice worn over a sunburst-pleated satin gown in bright red, bristled with ostrich fronds. Bead embroidery was made across cocktail dresses like Edwardian necklaces. Ivory lace-and-chiffon lingerie blouses were worn with black skirts. He also caught something of the 1940's spirit with pleated skirts and neat hourglass jackets.
But as always Valentino's eye was on gowns that would look marvellous on the red carpet at the Oscars ceremony. He stitched crystals into bodices and sequins at ankles on hose.
The Fashion Institute of Technology in New York, held an exhibition called "Fashion - Italian Style" from February to April 2003.
Valentino's gowns were beautifully represented. One black and white dress made for Elizabeth Taylor was on display, among others.
Oscar Night 2003
Jennifer Lopez appeared on Oscar night in a pale green one-shouldered dress with cut-work embroidery around the hem. This was retrieved from Valentino's archives.
This same dress had been worn by Mrs. Jacqueline Kennedy in 1967 for her visit to Cambodia.
Haute Couture - Fall/Winter 2003
Valentino is the King of the red-carpet dresses, dresses worn on such occasions as the Oscar ceremony. He again showed a couture collection in July in Paris with luxurious daywear such as fur-edged tweed suits, and tailored leather skirt suits with silk lapels. For the cocktail hour, there were cobweb dresses of jewelled crochet and feather-hemmed strapless mini dresses.
Gowns for evening were flesh pink, gold, black and lilac chiffon, each one different but just as breath-taking as the next. Here on the left, is a ruffle-hemmed dress in signature Valentino red, tied at the shoulder with satin ribbons.
Spring/Summer 2004
During Paris Fashion Week in October 2003, Valentino showed his own collection for next Spring. His message was about lace and lingerie with fragile corseted dresses in gently falling frills. He decorated a summer suede jackete with sequined bobbles and made suits out of lightest, palest liquid satin. Supermodel Naomi Campbell wore a nautical getup of white sailor pants and a navy blue silk sweater. Butterfly prints also floated through this collection.
Valentino's personal favourite was the navy blue skirt and white blouse with a bow shown on the right. He said "it is a young, feminine outfit and shows lightness and summer, you know V stands for "vacation" as well as Valentino."
Haute Couture Spring/Summer 2004
In Paris in January 2004 Valentino showed his usual marvelous show of classics, including his favourite colour RED. Recently he complained that too much nudity was being shown on the catwalk, but in this show he brought a bodice under the breasts and showed the model's nipples, as seen on the left. This was certainly a very feminine collection.
Fall/Winter 2004 ready-to-wear
Valentino presented his Fall collection in Paris during Fashion Week in March 2004. An dress from the show is pictured on the right. He played up the Marlene Dietrich era when she starred in "Blue Angel" giving an erotic elegant frisson to his clothes this season. The black chiffon evening dress that closed his show, was a slim column complemented by a draped bodice. Some of his dresses sliced to reveal an embroidered or satin bra. There were many splashes of colour, particularly red which is his favourite color. His dazzling evening dresses are just made for red-carpet occasions.
Haute Couture Fall 2004
Valentino can always be counted on to give wealthy women something fantastic to wear. He sent out a selection of fur-wrapped snow queens with white, pale gold and silver skirts and stunning black cocktail dresses accessorised with jewels and stoles. He did not forget his favourite red, as can be seen from the dress on the left. Valentino is the last survivor of the great days of Haute Couture and after 50 years, he is still the best.
Spring/Summer 2005
Ready-to-Wear
During Paris Fashion Week in October 2004, Valentino showed his collection for next Spring. A beautiful satin skirt and top outfit from this collection is shown on the right.
His ruffled floral chiffon dresses, pleated cotton skirts embroidered with gold and small fitted jackets strewn with beads showed why he is the leading classic designer today. He knows what is glamorous, luxurious, casual and what is appropriate for every occasion and age.
Haute Couture Spring/Summer 2005
During January 2005, the Haute Couture shows for Spring/Summer 2005 took place in Paris. Valentino's show was magnificent and modern, using technology to enfold his audience with world traveler images which had inspired him. He started with a Spanish bull-ring with toredor decoration, then moved to Moscow and Leipzig.
Highlights included flowers embroidered at the back of a hemline, and what appeared to be butterfly tattoos turned out to be embroidery on nude gauze, perfect workmanship from his Roman atelier. Sand beige clothes from Egypt or sugar pink taffeta gowns from Las Vegas, were all typical of Valentino's elegant, decorative and luxurious creations. All roads lead to Rome for his clientele.
Here on the right is supermodel Naomi Campbell in an outfit made up of a satin blouse, with trailing sleeves and an embroidered skirt with scenes of citylife.
Oscar Night
February 27th 2005
Valentino is always called on for red-carpet occasions and the Oscars were no exception.
Here on the left is Cate Blanchett in one of Valentino's beautiful yellow gowns.
Autumn/Winter 2005
Valentino's Autumn/Winter collection was shown during Paris Fashion Week in March 2005.
An outfit from the show is pictured on the right, from which it can be seen that Valentino has decided to go very casual and modern for this season.
He included shrugs, jeans and shapely tops. Caps were seen and he used a diamond motif over the hem of camel capes. Of course there were some drop-dead gowns as he always takes care of the red-carpet occasion gowns but the pure essence of Valentino is in a tiny muff of tulle at the front, lace snuggled into a draped jacket and those long icing sugar ruffles.
A Night in Rome
On June 1st 2005, people in Rome enjoyed a wonderful spectacle. Italy's four leading fashion designers Armani, Valentino, Gianfranco Ferre, and Donatella Versace put on a show of their creations. One of the gowns made by Valentino is shown on the left.
Haute Couture Autumn/Winter 2005 
The Haute Couture collections for Autumn/Winter 2005 were held in Paris in July 2005. Valentino certainly showed no signs of retiring from his position as the top designer in the world. His collection in Paris was ever-rich with velvet suits beaded in jet, topaz and crystal and beautiful gowns of graphic black and white, or solemn black alone. Of course one or two of his signature red gowns were shown, like the one on the right.
Valentino and his business partner Gian-carlo Giametti confirmed that they had renewed their contract with the Italian textile group Marzotto. It seems that Paris Haute Couture is going to retain it's golden image with the help of Italian designers like Valentino and Armani rather than the old French houses who are slowly slipping away.
Ready-to-Wear
Spring/Summer 2006
Paris Fashion Week
Valentino presented his Ready-to-Wear Spring/Summer 2006 collection during Paris Fashion Week in October 2005. An all-white outfit from the collection is shown on the left. The blouse had a high neck and transparent tulle bishop sleeves, billowing at the wrist. Narrow pants with a thin leather belt were worn below, with a gold medallion hanging at the waist.
This season almost every designer has shown ruffles but Valentino has been the master of the ruffled dress for 35 years. The fresh sparkling whiteness of his collection, dazzled his audience. There is nothing so beautiful and elegant as a Valentino collection.
Congratulations
In October 2005 Valentino was presented with the Superstar award at the Fashion Group International Night of the Stars in New York, by his very good friend actress Meryl Streep. He is also appearing in her film "The Devil Wears Prada" where she plays a fictional fashion editor loosely based on Diana Vreeland.
Valentino said he was delighted that people appreciate his work, and have done for so many decades. He said he loves America and the American ladies who wear his clothes.
Valentino is Retiring
In the first week of September 2007, Valentino dropped a bombshell on the fashiuon world. He will be completing his Haute Couture collection in January 2008, and will then retire from the house that bears his name.
He has named his successor, a friend of many years, Alessandra Facchinetti, at present designing for Gucci. 2008 will be her year. Alessandra is shown here on the left.
click below:
Valentino (The Universe of Fashion) by Bernadine Morris
Valentino: Thirty Years of Magic by Marie Paule Pelle
2007
Valentino (W)