Gianni Versace, a hyperbolic classic in front of the mirror

Gianni Versace didn’t like parties. He felt comfortable in front of a book, studying and researching different civilizations to create his designs. Jose Luis Díez-Garde, curator of the interesting exhibition ‘Gianni Versace in front of the mirror’, refers to the evidence. An exhibition proposal can be enjoyed until October 6 at the National Museum of Decorative Arts in Madrid. A dialogue between Versace garments from 1984 to 1994 and museum pieces from centuries ago to show how the Italian genius, who was considered a classic, built from history the fundamental basis for the language that the brand has been constantly repeating since then. , making it easily recognizable at first glance.

The Calabrian created Atelier Versace in 1989, after having triumphed since the beginning of the decade with minimally colored and functional fashion. At the beginning of haute couture he worked with cultural references drawn from classical antiquity or the East, for which he felt a great fascination. Decorative excesses, sexual desire or art are a constant in his work. “Superficiality is reached through transcendence,” said the Italian, creator of the brand that revitalized haute couture when in the early 1990s it seemed to be in decline due to sociocultural changes that promoted ephemeral styles. A breath of fresh air that John Galliano would inherit with a more theatrical touch.

Despite managing to develop his own language that marked those early 90s, renewing the system through music, celebrities and top models, Gianni was no stranger to trends or other great creators. Considered by critics as a hyperbolic version of Valentino, he recognized that all designers were indebted to Yves Saint Laurent, from whom, the curator points out, he received clientele, especially actresses. He admired Romeo Gigli, Issey Miyake and, especially, Karl Lagerfeld for the way he had revitalized the Chanel myth. Not in vain did he consider the kaiser of fashion his teacher.

Fabulous donation

Some of these designers occupied space in the dressing room of an Italian businesswoman who decided to make a generous donation to the National Museum of Decorative Arts in 2001, when the Costume Museum did not yet exist. This fabulous gift from one of Gianni Versace’s best clients is made up of more than one hundred and eighty pieces, among which more than one hundred and twenty pieces of haute couture dating from the 80s and 90s stand out, belonging to brands such as Valentino Couture, Chanel , Renato Balestra, Emmanuel Ungaro, Givenchy Couture, Yves Saint Laurent or Atelier Versace.

Garments that tell us about the particular taste of an Italian collector in such a way that, without being a total representation of Atelier Versace’s proposals, they do give us an idea of ​​the approaches that the couturier developed in those years, which were inspired by painters like Andy Warhol. , from which, for example, he borrows the face that made Marilyn Monroe so popular to capture it on shiny pants that can be seen in the exhibition.

As it is a private person’s wardrobe, there are no pieces of the theater clothing that she made, dressing personalities such as Montserrat Caballé. Yes, you can see other celebrities who wore their designs when compiling more than 30 published covers, in addition to making a nod to their reflection in music and cinema, with forays into films such as ‘Showgirls’ or ‘Kika’, in this case commissioned by Pedro Almodóvar, of whom Gianni declared himself a great fan. “Wearing Versace brought prestige because everyone knew the brand,” praises Díez-Garde of the man who took the kindest version of Medusa as his amulet and the brand’s logo since 1993.