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Giovanni Maria Versace was born in the city of Reggio Calabria on 2 December 1946 and grew up with his elder brother Santo Versace and younger sister Donatella Versace, along with their father and dressmaker mother, Francesca. An older sister, Tina, died at age 12 because of an improperly treated tetanus infection.

Fashion empire

After opening his Milan boutique in 1978, Versace quickly became a sensation on the international fashion scene. His designs employed vivid colours, bold prints and sexy cuts, which were a refreshing contrast to the prevailing taste for muted colours and simplicity. His aesthetic, which “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.”

In 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 jewellery 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 1984 and ’85, he contributed a specially appointed Gianni Versace Edition to the Mark VII line of US luxury automaker Lincoln. 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 advertisement campaigns.

At the time of his death, Versace’s empire was valued at $807 million and included 130 boutiques across the world.

Stage designs

Throughout his career, Versace was a prolific costume designer for stage productions and performing artists. He stated, “for me the theatre is liberation”, and his designs were well served by his penchant for bold colours, drapery, embellishment, and an encyclopedic knowledge of fashion history. He was a collaborator at the La Scala Theatre Ballet in Milan and designed the costumes for the Strauss ballet Josephslegende in 1982 and Donizetti’s Don Pasquale.^[15] He also designed the costumes for five Béjart Ballet productions: Dionysos (1984), Leda and the Swan (1987), Malraux ou la Métamorphoses des Dieux (1986), Chaka Zulu (1989) and the Ballet du XXme Siècle. In 1990, he designed the costumes for the San Francisco Opera’s production of Capriccio.  Versace designed Michael Jackson and Paul McCartney on their 1983 “Say Say Say” video and Elton John’s costumes for his The One Tour. 

Personal life

Versace met his partner Antonio D’Amico, a model, in 1982. Their relationship lasted until Versace’s murder. During this time, Versace was diagnosed with HIV.

Versace was known for adoration towards his nieces and nephews: Santo’s two children, Francesca and Antonio, and Donatella’s two children, Allegra and Daniel. 

Upon his death, Gianni left a 50% stake in his company to his niece Allegra Versace who was 11 years old at the time. His brother Santo inherited 30% and Donatella inherited the remaining 20%. In 2014, Versace sold a 20% stake in the firm to private equity firm Blackstone. The investment valued Versace at roughly $1.4 billion. On September 25, 2018, Michael Kors Holdings announced it had struck a deal to acquire Versace for $2.2 billion.