Valentino Garavani: What fashion owes to the great Italian designer

By The Editorial Team.

Valentino Garavani, the Emperor of Italian couture

When Valentino Garavani first set foot in the great salons of Parisian couture, no one could have guessed that he would return to Rome to write one of the finest chapters in fashion history. Born in 1932 in Voghera, Italy, and trained at the Chambre Syndicale de la Couture in Paris, he learned the discipline of haute couture. The young designer then worked with masters, such as Jean Dessès and Guy Laroche.

As a true Roman, he returned home and founded his eponymous house in 1959. It was then that he imposed a sovereign vision of Italian couture, against all odds. While Milan would become more industrialized, Valentino chose Rome, its palaces, slow pace, and theatricality. Through him, Italy ceased to be simply a place for craftsmanship – it became imperial. Indeed, Valentino Garavani would be nicknamed the last emperor of Italian fashion.

Red, his signature color

In the history of colours, few are as legendary as that of Valentino red. Inspired by a woman in a red dress seen at the Barcelona opera, this shade left nothing to chance. It appeared in Valentino Garavani’s very first collection in 1969. The perfect embodiment of elegance, passion, and energy.

Named Rosso Valentino, it became such a strong signature colour that it was eventually codified by Pantone, the global authority regarding colours. Few designers have managed to turn a shade into a universal emblem, recognizable without a logo or words.

It would take Pierpaolo Piccioli, his successor, to see history repeat itself. For his Valentino Fall/Winter 2022–2023 show, the Roman designer presented an entirely pink collection. That shade, Pink PP, was developed in collaboration with Pantone and paid tribute to Rosso Valentino.

The couturier of the jet set

Valentino didn’t just design dresses, he dressed lives. From Jackie Kennedy choosing a white Valentino gown for her wedding to Aristotle Onassis in 1968, to actresses Elizabeth Taylor and Audrey Hepburn, not to mention Princess Diana, his creations marked some of the most iconic moments of the 20th century.

In his studios, haute couture became a stage. In his private salons, the international jet set called on the designer not just for clothing, but above all, for fantasy. Later, like his fellow Italian designer Giorgio Armani, he dressed the most famous supermodels of the 1990s and 2000s, including Naomi Campbell, Elle Macpherson, and Claudia Schiffer.

Valentino’s legacy

When he retired in 2008, Valentino Garavani entrusted his empire to a duo of designers, Maria Grazia Chiuri and Pierpaolo Piccioli. In 2017, Piccioli took over as sole creative director until March 2024. A few days later, Roman designer Alessandro Michele was chosen to carry on the couturier’s legacy. Through them, the heritage of Italian haute couture lives on.

But beyond the renewed silhouettes, it is a philosophy of fashion that endures. A powerful idea of glamour, one that elevates women and their desires, and a form of romanticism that stood the test of time for decades without ever fading.

On Monday, January 19th, Valentino Garavani passed away in Rome at the age of 93, surrounded by loved ones. But what fashion owes him remains unparalleled, like a red mark that never goes away.