Gianni Versace

• 1. Introduction

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  Gianni Versace walked out of his Miami Beach mansion on the morning of the 15th of July 1997 to buy his morning magazines. Ocean Drive stretched out ahead of him. Most days an assistant made the short walk to the nearby News Cafe on his behalf. That morning, for reasons nobody recorded, he decided to go himself.

  It was a small errand for a man who dressed pop stars, princesses and supermodels. His name was stitched into clothes, perfume, china and furniture on several continents. Yet he had started far from any runway, in a southern Italian city with very little to do with fashion. How does a boy from that city end up shaping the look of an entire decade? Why did he take such pleasure in breaking the rules his rivals obeyed? And what did a stranger want from him on a quiet street in Florida?

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• 2. Boy of Reggio Calabria

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  Reggio Calabria, where Giovanni Maria Versace was born on the 2nd of December 1946, is a city whose landscape is dominated by ancient Greek history. He grew up there with an elder brother, Santo, a younger sister, Donatella, a father, and a mother named Francesca who worked as a dressmaker. An older sister, Tina, had died at the age of 12 after a tetanus infection was not treated properly.

  The classical world pressed in on him from every side. At the Liceo Classico Tommaso Campanella he studied Latin and ancient Greek, though he left without finishing the course. Another influence arrived from much farther away. The American pop artist Andy Warhol made a lasting impression on the young Versace.

  His real education happened at home. His mother ran a sewing business that employed as many as a dozen seamstresses, and he began his apprenticeship there at a young age. For a time he was drawn toward architecture instead. Then, at the age of 26, he left for Milan to work in fashion design.

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• 3. Milan and the Mistress

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  In 1973 Versace took charge of Byblos, a youthful line at the Genny label, and it was a success. Four years later he designed Complice, a more experimental line for the same house. Encouraged, he presented his first signature collection for women at the Palazzo Della Permanente Art Museum of Milan. His first fashion show followed in September of that same year. In 1978 he opened his first boutique on Milan's Via della Spiga.

  Almost at once he became a sensation abroad. At a time when fashion favoured muted colours and restraint, he sent out vivid colours, bold prints and daring cuts. One description of his aesthetic called it a combination of luxurious classicism with overt sexuality. Critics attacked it as often as they praised it.

  Versace seemed to enjoy the argument. He is quoted as saying, "I don't believe in good taste." His rivalry with Giorgio Armani produced a saying that circulated through the industry: "Armani dresses the wife, Versace dresses the mistress."

  The clothes that provoked all this had a deeper source than provocation. Versace was reaching back into the past.

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• 4. Medusa and the Masters

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  Ravenna's mosaics and the draped fabric of ancient Rome both found their way into Versace's collections. He mined Classicism, Byzantium, the 18th century and the 1920s and 1930s, then reworked their elements for contemporary wearers. He was proud of his southern Italian roots, and the Graeco-Roman world ran through everything he made. The company's logo is the Medusa Head, and the Greek key appears again and again as a motif.

  Contemporary art mattered just as much. He drew on Gustav Klimt, Robert Delaunay, Alexander Calder, Andy Warhol and Jim Dine. He turned the art of Roy Lichtenstein and Warhol into graphic prints. One collection featured dresses inspired by Warhol's portraits of Marilyn Monroe and James Dean. He often collaborated with living artists and borrowed their work as motifs.

  Pablo Picasso held a special place for him. Versace was an avid collector and owned several of the painter's works. After his death, 25 pieces from his personal Picasso collection were auctioned.

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• 5. The Family Empire

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  From 1978 onward Versace built his company with relatives at his side. His brother Santo served as president, and his sister Donatella became vice-president. Donatella also acted as a key consultant on the creative side. Her husband, Paul Beck, was later hired as menswear director.

  In 1982 Versace invented a super-light chainmail called Oroton, which became a signature material in his outfits. His menswear drew on his experience of tailoring for women. He rejected the masculine Savile Row model and cut suits that accentuated the male body. One account says they insisted on men as sex objects.

  The business widened quickly that same year into jewellery and housewares, covering luxury furnishings, china and textiles. Unusually, he kept complete creative control over every part of the company. In 1984 and 1985 he contributed a Gianni Versace Edition to Lincoln's Mark VII line. In 1989 the firm moved into haute couture with Atelier Versace.

  He also changed how fashion was sold. Versace was the first to hire celebrities for his marketing campaigns and seat them in the front rows of his shows. His friends came from the music world, among them Eric Clapton, Whitney Houston, Madonna, Elton John and Tupac Shakur. Princess Diana, Joan Collins and Kate Moss were also in his circle. He is credited with creating the supermodel vogue of the 1990s by featuring Naomi Campbell, Christy Turlington and Linda Evangelista on runways and in advertisements.

  Honours followed. On the 24th of January 1986 Italian president Francesco Cossiga made him a Commendatore della Repubblica Italiana. On the 1st of February 1993 he received the American Fashion Oscar. When he died, his empire was valued at $807 million and included 130 boutiques around the world.

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• 6. Costumes for the Stage

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  "For me the theatre is liberation," Versace once said. Bold colours, rich drapery and a deep knowledge of fashion history suited the stage well. He worked with the ballet at La Scala in Milan, where he designed costumes for the Strauss ballet Josephslegende in 1982 and for Donizetti's Don Pasquale.

  Five productions for Béjart Ballet followed. They were Dionysos in 1984, Malraux ou la Métamorphoses des Dieux in 1986, Leda and the Swan in 1987, Chaka Zulu in 1989, and the Ballet du XXme Siècle. In 1990 he dressed the San Francisco Opera's production of Capriccio.

  Popular music pulled him in as well. In 1983 he designed looks for Michael Jackson and Paul McCartney in their video for Say Say Say. He also created costumes for Elton John's The One Tour. For Elton John Live in Barcelona, a 1992 video documentary, he served as production designer.

  His name also turned up in film and television. He is credited on Miami Vice in 1989, Kika in 1993, and Judge Dredd and Showgirls in 1995. He even appeared as an actor in Spice World in 1997, though his scenes were deleted after his death.

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• 7. Ocean Drive

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  In 1982 Versace met Antonio D'Amico, a model who became his partner. Their relationship lasted until the day Versace was killed. During those years he was diagnosed with ear cancer, and he was declared cancer free six months before his death. He was also known for his devotion to his nieces and nephews. Santo had two children, Francesca and Antonio. Donatella had two as well, Allegra and Daniel.

  As he climbed the steps of his mansion, Casa Casuarina, a man named Andrew Cunanan shot him in the head at point-blank range. The weapon was a .40 calibre Taurus PT100. Cunanan was a spree killer who had already murdered four other men. They included his friend Jeffrey Trail, his former boyfriend David Madson, and the real estate developer Lee Miglin. Versace was pronounced dead at Jackson Memorial Hospital at 9:21 am, aged 50.

  Dean Aslett, once Versace's senior stylist in the United Kingdom, saw it happen. He was on vacation in South Beach and had partied with Versace only days earlier. Eight days after the shooting, Cunanan died by suicide on a houseboat.

  No one has explained why Versace was the target. Cunanan bragged about a close friendship with the designer, but he often falsely claimed to have met celebrities. FBI agents nonetheless firmly believe the two had met before, in San Francisco. A 2008 Vanity Fair article by Maureen Orth reported eyewitness claims of a brief meeting at a San Francisco nightclub in 1990. Orth added that they might have crossed paths again in the sex-for-hire circles of Miami and San Francisco. Versace's family has steadfastly denied that the two ever met. Miami Beach Police Chief Richard Barreto admitted, "I don't know that we are ever going to know the answers."

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• 8. After Versace

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  Versace's body was cremated, and his ashes were returned to the family's estate near Cernobbio. They were buried in the family vault at Moltrasio cemetery, near Lake Como. His funeral liturgy at Milan Cathedral drew over 2,000 people. Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy, Naomi Campbell, Elton John, Whitney Houston and Diana, Princess of Wales, were among them.

  In September 1997 the estate announced that Santo would become chief executive of Gianni Versace S.p.A. Donatella took over as head of design. In his will, Versace left 50% of the company to his niece Allegra. She and her brother Daniel inherited his rare art collection. Allegra received her stake, worth approximately $500 million, when she turned 18 in 2004.

  Others remembered him in their own ways. Elton John dedicated his 1997 album The Big Picture to Versace. In July 2007 La Scala staged a ballet called Thanks Gianni, With Love, written by Maurice Béjart for the anniversary of his death. A Russian fan club was founded in 2009 and counted 1,500 members by July 2012.

  Popular culture kept returning to the murder. The second season of the American series American Crime Story is subtitled The Assassination of Gianni Versace, with Édgar Ramírez in the title role. In an episode of the Irish sitcom Father Ted, Fr Dougal McGuire asks, "God, Ted, do you remember that fella who was so good at fashion they had to shoot him?" Eminem alluded to the killing in his 2000 song "Criminal". In 2017 the Italy-USA Foundation gave Versace its America Award in memory.

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