Versace back from the Dead!

Versace back on track 14 years after death of inspirational founder!

Seeing so many inspiring work in the recent collections is very Gianni. Something Gianni Versace would be proud of the talented woman/sister Donatella. Reminder, she invented the Supermodels: the Christy, Cindy, Naomi, Linda and Nikki and Claudia....

 

The house of  Versace has been trapped in a paradox ever since the summer evening in 1997, when Gianni Versace was gunned down outside his Miami home. That event catapulted the Versace name from  fashion magazines to every newspaper front page at the very moment the house was robbed of its defining talent.

 

Donatella Versace was on the catwalk in her brother's place within months, but it has taken her well over a decade to make his seat in the Versace studio her own. In the past two years she has said that for the first time she feels she is speaking with her voice; critically, her collections have had a warm reception. Nobody knows which of these came first.

For the customer currently mulling over her wardobe for next summer's yacht holiday, Donatella had the perfect muse: the Versace Siren. Mermaids, after all, are surely the original beach sex symbols. The show began with white leather shorts and chiffon minidresses, with sections of pleating and gold studs.
White, chiffon, leather, tight pleating, gold studs and tanned upper thighs all being historic codes of the house of Versace, it was immediately clear this was to be a collection true to brand values.

 

 To underscore the fantasy element, the models floated inches off the catwalk, on clear Lucite platforms; as a nod to current trends (the Versace mermaid definitely reads glossies, when off duty) she slipped neoprene jackets over her flimsy dresses. Donatella said after the show that she had in mind "a mermaid arriving in New York on a summer evening, ready to conquer the city."

Versace finances, which were in a precarious state for much of the noughties, appear to be back on track. CEO Gian Ferraris said recently that he stands by his prediction, 18 months ago, that the brand would be back in profit by the end of 2011.
The once fragmented house is in a period of consolidation. Production of the secondary line, Versus, which is designed by Christopher Kane, has been brought back in-house; in November the capsule collection for H&M looks set to boost brand profile further. Backstage after last night's show, it was noticeable that Donatella – who a few years ago would have been closeted in a private room, unavailable to all but her inner circle – was in the centre of the action backstage.

  

Her inspiration for the collection, she said, was "strong women – like this one." With this, she put an arm around Franca Sozzani, the editor of Italian Vogue, who had arrived to congratulate Donatella on the collection. With the Italian fashion industry facing a stormy economic forecast, Donatella stressed the need "to be true to your brand. That is the way to survive," she said. "And for Versace that is the strong, sensual woman."

 

Sozzani said the collection was "very Versace. And by Versace, now I mean Donatella. It is a different Versace. More extravagant in some ways, but more feminine in others. Gianni was tougher. He always said it was because he didn't have to wear the clothes – it is different for Donatella, because she does." Donatella took her bow in a gold-studded white leather sheath dress from the catwalk collection.
A collection that is 'very Versace' will by definition never be to everyone's taste. After the preceding evening's Prada masterclass in modernist, awkward-chic pastel colour clashes, Versace's disco-ball pastels had a certain toothachey sweetness.

Possibly, it wasn't necessary to underscore the mermaid theme with starfish, octopus, shells and seahorses. One or two would have sufficed. Likewise, the evening dresses would perhaps be better served by deep cleavage or a high side split, rather than both. But then mermaids never did understatement – and nor does Versace.