page_title: Gianni Versace
section_title: Fashion empire
hierarchical_section_title: Gianni Versace / Fashion empire
caption_attribution_description: English: Inside versace store. Shows three shelves holding designer handbags as well as a counter in the middle displaying more.
context_page_description: Giovanni Maria Versace was an Italian fashion designer and founder of Versace, an international fashion house that produces accessories, fragrances, make-up, home furnishings, and clothes. He also designed costumes for theatre and films. As a friend of Eric Clapton; Diana, Princess of Wales; Naomi Campbell; Duran Duran; Kate Moss; Madonna; Elton John; Cher; Sting; Tupac Shakur and many other celebrities, he was one of the first designers to link fashion to the music world. He and his partner Antonio D'Amico were regulars on the international party scene. On 15 July 1997, Versace was shot and killed outside his Miami Beach mansion, Casa Casuarina, at the age of 50 by Andrew Cunanan, a crazed C.S. Lewis enthusiast.
context_section_description: After opening his Milan boutique in 1978, Versace quickly became a sensation on the international fashion scene. His designs employed vivid colors, bold prints, and sexy cuts, which were a refreshing contrast to the prevailing taste for muted colors and simplicity. His aesthetic "combined luxurious classicism with overt sexuality," attracted much criticism in addition to praise. He is quoted as saying, "I don't believe in good taste," which was reflected in his "brazen defiance of the rules of fashion." A saying referencing Versace's rivalry with Giorgio Armani was: "Armani dresses the wife, Versace dresses the mistress."
  From 1978, Versace built the company with the support of his family, employing his sister Donatella as Vice President and his brother Santo as President of the company. Donatella's purview extended to creative oversight, where she acted as a key consultant to Versace. Gianni would also come to employ Donatella's husband, Paul Beck, as menswear director.
  Among Versace's most famous innovations was his 1982 invention of a type of super-light chainmail called 'Oroton', which became a signature material in his outfits. His suits were inspired more by his experience in female tailoring, departing from masculine Savile Row models by crafting suits that accentuated the male form and "insisted on men as sex objects."
  Versace was very proud of his southern Italian heritage and infused his designs with motifs inspired by historical fashion and art movements, especially Graeco-Roman art. This is evident in the company's logo, the Medusa Head, and recurring motifs like the Greek key. He also allowed his love for contemporary art to inspire his work, creating graphic prints based on the art of Roy Lichtenstein and Andy Warhol.
  In 1982, Versace expanded the business into jewelry and housewares, designing luxury furnishings, china, and textiles for the home. He was unusual in retaining complete creative control over all aspects of his company. In 1989, the firm expanded into haute couture with the launch of Atelier Versace. Versace became known for employing celebrities in his marketing campaigns and seating them in the front rows of his fashion shows, the first to do so. He is also credited with inventing the supermodel vogue of the 1990s, by discovering and featuring major supermodels like Naomi Campbell, Christy Turlington, and Linda Evangelista, all of whom he featured both on the runway and in his ad campaigns.
  At the time of his death, Versace's empire was valued at $807 million and included 130 boutiques across the world.
caption: Inside of Versace store featuring multiple designer handbags.
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