Versace Spectacular Gowns
- Posted by: angeli.krohmal
Versace is an Italian fashion house with a special aesthetic and a spirit of high art. Created in 1978, it still causes admiring sighs and irrepressible desire to possess things with the famous Medusa emblem. A woman wearing Versace dress has a magnetic appeal and exudes the spirit of old Italy, while being very modern. We have selected a few examples of Versace couture dress for you that are impossible not to notice at a holiday reception, in the office or on a walk along the Italian coast.
The history of the Versace fashion house is full of ups and downs, tragedies, bitter disappointments and stunning victories. The dynasty continues to surprise us today with its fashion solutions, presents surprises and creates a whole cult of people eager to touch and become a part of the original Italian aesthetics. Let's dive into the origins and learn all about the talent, passion and creativity of this fashion house.
The mother of the designers Gianni and Donatella, Francesca, can be considered a pioneer in the creation of clothes from Versace. The Versace family lived in the south of Italy in a tiny town and she was the owner of a small atelier and clothing store. Already from early childhood Gianni helped his mother in her work and became increasingly fond of the art of creating clothes. By the way, the boy made his first dress at the age of 9. Father and mother did not attach much importance to the hobby of their son, but did not interfere - he actively performed any assignment of his mother, and eventually even began to travel to various fashion shows. In addition to simple procedural assignments Gianni was fond of drawing sketches of evening dresses. In general, he had little interest in schooling and was only interested in fashion, which caused a lot of problems, but at the insistence of his parents he still graduated from school.
The further choice of the family was to train the boy in the profession of an architect, although he did not have a huge passion in this direction, despite being fond of visiting various architectural structures, especially the era of antiquity. This was reflected in further outfits of the future designer. However, Gianni never graduated from university, returning to his hometown for more global assistance to his mother in the atelier. The first independent collection, which he managed to create at the age of 22, was quickly sold out, and the young talent began to be recognized.
Gianni got his first separate job in the Florentine Flowers brand. The guy moved to Milan and started creating clothes. Customers appreciated the work of the master and he received orders from other Italian brands. In 1974 Gianni founded his first own company - Complice Versace, within its framework the first collection of leather goods was released. By that time his older brother Santo had finished his administrative studies and the brothers decided to open a full-fledged fashion house, where Gianni became a couturier, and Santo controlled the finances. In 1978 their sister Donatella joined them, and a year later the world learned about the brand Gianni Versace. The famous Medusa Rondanini emblem as a tribute to Gianni Versace's love for ancient art is known even to those who are far from high fashion. He himself has said that the sculpture has a special magnetic mesmerizing effect and he strives for the same in his fashion products.
The first collection under the final brand gained incredible fame. Gianni deliberately emphasized the attractiveness and seductiveness of the female body with mini lengths, deep necklines and graceful silhouettes. At the same time, the brand began to create menswear. Versace's fame spread around the world quite quickly. The press willingly shared spectacular photos from Versace shows in their newspapers, because there was something to see there: the Versace family's vision was not limited only to good clothes. They attracted famous models of the time to the demonstrations and it was not just a catwalk, but a whole show. At that time in Europe, such an open demonstration of body beauty through clothes was not yet the norm for society (although the sexual revolution was already spreading among people in waves),and therefore, in addition to fame and recognition, there was a lot of criticism. However, Gianni did not care - he believed that it was not worth hiding beauty behind the conservative framework of decency. By the end of the 80s every second celebrity was eager to have Versace clothes in their own collection.
Development
At the beginning of the 80s Gianni had a creative peak of his career. He worked in many directions: he created the concept of metallic clothing, which required the painstaking work of many specialists to create new fabrics with this effect. At the same time, a line of perfumes was founded, which were just as quickly sold out. In addition, fascinated by other art forms, Gianni began designing costumes for the La Scala theater. Toward the end of the decade, boutiques began to open across Italy and in Asia. During the same period the brand realized that the popularity was growing extremely fast and many people wanted to own things with their tag, so the assortment grew and it already included all kinds of accessories, interior items, tableware and even furniture. The brand could already afford to conquer the US market. There, in addition to selling the main collections in gradually opening boutiques, Gianni also worked on the creation of stage costumes for theater and cinema. Gianni and his brother recognized the potential of the American market and developed an expansion plan that included opening a giant branded boutique in New York.
With the development of the range, the designer paid more attention to the segmentation of collections and decided to create haute couture - that is how Atelier Versace came into being. From the point of view of financial investments it was risky, but the creator knew what he was doing - expensive pieces of clothing were appreciated very highly. In this way all new ranges were created, sister Donatella developed youth versions, and Gianni planned the opening of new boutiques.
Many people know Gianni's sociability and his successful contact with various celebrities. This is how he established a friendly relationship with Princess Diana. Modest and introverted by nature Lady Di was at first confused by the increased attention of the fashion designer to her person, but later the relationship became clear and since then she often went out in public in Versace outfits. Gianni was a very generous man, often presented his star admirers with gifts of his creations. Surely many people remember the legendary black dress with huge decorative pins for Elizabeth Hurley, the British actress. This dress, as well as the brand, made fashion history and cemented its status as a mind-blowing and luxurious fashion brand.
The downfall
The downside of fame is always rumors, speculations and foul deeds. The brand's products became so popular that its reputation was sullied by the production of fakes on one side and boutique thefts on the other. In addition, there were several financial scandals: Santo was accused of bribery, which led to legal proceedings. Another stone in Versace's garden was a rumor of deals with the Mafia. However, all this did not diminish the love of clients, although it cast an unpleasant shadow on the brand.
The biggest blow to the Italian fashion empire was the high-profile murder of its creator. In 1997, Gianni was shot dead right outside his villa. The killer could not be apprehended - he committed suicide, and therefore the reasons for the terrible deed could not be found out, although several versions were put forward. The story remained unsolved.
For fans of the brand it became a massive tragedy, because it was believed that Gianni was at the peak of creative inspiration, the last collections were really outstanding.
After Gianni
It was a very difficult time for the brand. According to the will, the company was further managed by the closest relatives: Santo, Donatella and her daughter. However, it was hard to withstand such a barrage of criticism, envy and pity. The first years as chief designer for Donatella Versace were literally negative: the collections were not liked and not sold, and such a large-scale company had to be kept afloat. The first decade of the new millennium passed under the banner of crisis - both creative and financial. The brand had to abandon many previously profitable ideas, which were now seen as futile expenses. Since 2005, the brand began to attract a variety of Hollywood celebrities for advertising. Gradually, this had a positive effect and the brand became in demand again, getting rid of debts and again expanding work on various products, including luxury goods, interiors of houses, cars and yachts. Donatella has also found an interesting solution in the form of developing the hotel business under the Versace umbrella. The brand continues to be interesting for young people who are passionate about the world of fashion. Even today such youth icons as Gigi Hadid, Lady Gaga, Candice Swanepoel and others cooperate with Versace.
To date, the company continues to prove to the world that things with the Versace tag are history, good taste, epatage and passion for fashion and human beauty. Donatella experiments and keeps up with the times. So, for example, the company of the Italian luxury brand and the famous company H&M appeared, which served for the benefit of both. The company plans to focus on creating interesting accessories and continuing development in the field of interiors and other luxury commodities.
In the world of Versace, there are outfits for every taste and degree of creativity and eccentricity. Here we have chosen options that are close to the classics and with a moderate degree of extravance but believe - any Versace outfit is a sign of your graceful personality.