Valentino Garavani, Legendary Italian Fashion Designer, Dies at 93
The iconic couturier was surrounded by his family at his home in Rome at the time of his death
Italian fashion designer Valentino Garavani died Monday at the age of 93, his foundation announced. The iconic couturier was surrounded by family at his home in Rome at the time of his death.
Known worldwide as Valentino, he launched his label in 1960 alongside Giancarlo Giammetti and quickly became one of the most sought-after designers for first ladies, royal figures, and Hollywood’s biggest stars. His career, which ended in retirement in 2008, earned him the title of “the last emperor” and introduced the color “Valentino Red,” to the fashion world.
“I am in love with beauty, I have always loved beautiful objects,” Valentino stated in the opening pages of Valentino: At the Emperor’s Table, a 2014 tome published by Assouline. The chapters that followed provided stunning evidence of just that, as the book toured his exquisite residences and his joy of hosting family and friends. “When you enter his world, you enter the world of luxury; you enter a rare and opulent, yet warm space,” André Leon Talley wrote in the introduction.
As news of his death spread, tributes on social media poured in from politicians, fashion industry insiders, and beyond. Giammetti wrote “…forever…” beneath a black and white photo of the legendary designer.
“Valentino, undisputed master of style and elegance and eternal symbol of Italian high fashion,” wrote Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni on X. “Today, Italy loses a legend, but his legacy will continue to inspire generations. Thank you for everything.”
“Today, we lost a true maestro who will forever be remembered for his art,” Donatella Versace shared on Instagram.
“I am deeply saddened,” wrote Alessandro Michele, Creative Director at Maison Valentino. “Today, an extraordinary man passed away. Valentino Garavani was not only an undisputed protagonist of fashion, but a central figure in Italian cultural history. A man who pushed the boundaries of possibility, traversing the world with rare delicacy, silent rigor, and a boundless love of beauty. He leaves us all a profound legacy: the idea that creating means caring, that beauty is radical and patient attention to bodies, to forms, to the time that passes through and preserves them.”
“We all knew him by his first name—Valentino, a romantic name he live dup to through the artfulness of the collections he designed and the passion for beauty that inspired him for so many decades,” wrote Ralph Lauren. “He said that women wanted to be ‘beautiful’ and that was his inspiration throughout his life. He was an icon in the world of fashion, and beyond, but more than that, he was a man that loved life, his family and friends that will miss him, but whose memory will live on through the timeless beauty of the world he created.”
A funeral is scheduled to take place on Friday, January 23, at the Basilica Santa Maria degli Angeli e dei Martiri, in Piazza della Repubblica 8 in Rome.