Gianni Versace S/S 2001 Runway Blue Sequin Embellished Cutout Back Dress Gown
About the Item
- Designer:
- Dimensions:Marked Size: IT 40 (EU)
- Period:
- Condition:
- Seller Location:Naples, FL
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU1624118702922
Gianni Versace
The signature extravagance of legendary fashion designer Gianni Versace — forever aligned with glamour, sex, celebrity and spectacle — can overshadow the Italian couturier’s broad and deep engagement with history and culture. Today, his vintage dresses and gowns, handbags, sunglasses and other accessories look astonishingly fresh and freshly relevant.
More than any designer before him, Versace mined celebrity, music and Pop art for inspiration, and his subversive, maximalist and unabashedly seductive designs infused high fashion with an entirely new ethos. “I don’t believe in good taste,” he once explained. Instead, he had a sexy good time with fashion — as he did with life.
Gianni Versace was born in Calabria, Italy. His mother was a successful dressmaker who employed more than 40 seamstresses. As a child, little Gianni marveled at her workshop, which would become a university of sorts, where he learned the exceptional construction techniques that were at the foundation of his creative expression.
In 1972, at age 25, he moved to Milan to work in fashion. He launched his first collection — and his label — in 1978, with his older brother Santo managing the business concerns. Soon, sister Donatella, whom Gianni dressed and took to discos when she was still a child, joined the family venture, where she had a creative role and managed enormously popular ready-to-wear lines such as Versus.
Vintage Versace — and Gianni Versace Couture, which debuted in 1989 — has become catnip for modern fashion enthusiasts who seek out the now-iconic house codes that originated in the designs of the 1980s and 1990s. His glamorous and seductive apparel — the clingy skirts and slender, strappy party dresses, as well as the erotic magazine ads that publicized them — looms large, but Versace’s art and historical influences were also vast.
Versace was an art collector, and he took on commissions to create costumes for theatrical performances during the 1980s and spoke of looking to numerous cultures for inspiration. The New York Times noted in 1997 that the fashion industry “is now driven by contemporary culture because Mr. Versace made it that way.”
Insiders consider his 1991/1992 Autumn/Winter runway show — which featured supermodels Christy Turlington, Cindy Crawford, Naomi Campbell and Linda Evangelista lip-synching George Michael’s “Freedom” — as the moment when the two worlds of fashion and pop culture became one, changing both forever.
Versace's adventurous spirit of design resulted in his creating jewel-toned prints rooted in Grecian motifs, Etruscan symbols, the Italian Baroque and Andy Warholʼs Marilyn Monroe. There were slinky dresses in Oroton, his patented chain-mail textile that draped like satin, and leather bondage ensembles. Sex sold, for both women and men. Wrote the late curator Richard Martin, “[Versace] became the standard-bearer of gay men’s fashion because he eschewed decorum and designed for desire.”
Following Versace’s tragic murder in 1997, Donatella took over the role of artistic director and continued to evolve the house codes with a twist of her feminine and feminist perspective. Today, Santo Versace is chief executive officer of Versace and Donatella is its chief creative officer.
Browse an extraordinary collection of vintage Gianni Versace evening dresses, handbags, day dresses and more on 1stDibs.
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Ships From: Naples, FL
- Return PolicyThis item cannot be returned.
- Tom Ford for Gucci F/W 2004 Bodycon Cutout White Mini DressBy Tom Ford for GucciLocated in Naples, FLTom Ford for Gucci F/W 2004 Bodycon Cutout White Mini Dress Size S Please note size tag has been removed.Category
Early 2000s Evening Dresses and Gowns
- Gianni Versace F/W 1999 Runway Cutout Silk Open Back Evening Dress GownLocated in Naples, FLGianni Versace F/W 1999 Runway Cutout Turquoise Silk Open Back Evening Dress Gown IT 38 As seen on the F/W 1999 Runway.Category
Early 2000s Evening Dresses and Gowns
- Azzedine Alaïa c.2004 Semi-Sheer Cutout Ruched Slits Gown Maxi Evening DressBy Azzedine AlaïaLocated in Naples, FLAzzedine Alaïa Semi-Sheer Cutout Ruched High Slits Gown Maxi Evening Dress FR 38 As seen on Naomi Campbell in the black color. Azzedine Alaia semi-sheer ruc...Category
Early 2000s Evening Dresses and Gowns
- Versace S/S 2004 Bustier Open Back High Slit Blue Dress GownBy VersaceLocated in Naples, FLVersace S/S 2004 Sexy Cutout Bustier Open Back Thigh High Slit Dress Gown IT 40 Blue Versace silk sleeveless evening dress featuring sweetheart neck...Category
Early 2000s Evening Dresses and Gowns
- Roberto Cavalli S/S 2003 Lace Up Chinoiserie Print Silk Slip Midi DressBy Roberto CavalliLocated in Naples, FLRoberto Cavalli S/S 2003 Lace Up Chinoiserie Print Silk Slip Midi Dress Size SCategory
Early 2000s Evening Dresses and Gowns
- Roberto Cavalli S/S 2011 Silk Bias Cut Asymmetrical Animal Print Slip DressBy Roberto CavalliLocated in Naples, FLRoberto Cavalli S/S 2011 Silk Bias Cut Asymmetrical Animal Print Slip Mini Dress IT 40Category
2010s Evening Dresses and Gowns
- Rose Taft Vintage Purple & Teal Silk Blend Strapless Gown w/ Floral Design - 10By ROSE TAFTLocated in West Palm Beach, FLRose Taft Vintage Purple & Teal Silk Blend Strapless Gown w/ Floral Design - 10. This lovely vintage gown is in excellent condition. It features a purple and teal silk blend materi...Category
Late 20th Century American Evening Dresses and Gowns
- Loris Azzaro Paris Blue & Green Watercolor Silk Strapless Vintage DressBy Loris Azzaro, Loris Azzaro ParisLocated in Portland, ORThis beautiful Loris Azzaro Paris vintage watercolor silk strapless cocktail or party dress was made in France in the 1980's. This stunning dress is in rich saturated shades of blue,...Category
1980s French Cocktail Dresses
- Parosh multicoloured dressLocated in Capri, ITParosh multicoloured dress Size SCategory
21st Century and Contemporary Evening Dresses and Gowns
- Understated denim dressLocated in Capri, ITUnderstated denim dress size MCategory
1990s Evening Dresses and Gowns
- Vintage 1990 Givenchy Haute Couture Sapphire Blue Draped Silk Velvet DressBy GivenchyLocated in Beverly Hills, CAGivenchy, the name itself evokes glamour, refined elegance, simplicity and style. Givenchy's trademark of sculpted lines and luxurious fabrics make his work easily recognizable. This gorgeous cocktail, dating back to his 1990 Fall-Winter runway collection, is a beautiful example of his brilliance. The fabric itself is a masterpiece; liquid silk velvet in the prettiest sapphire blue color. I adore the seductive criss-cross plunge bodice with lean, long zipper-wrist sleeves. The sparkling rhinestone-encrusted side buttons create the perfect amount of drama to this timeless piece. An hourglass nipped-waist skirt with side draping finishes this garment off with a perfect femme fatale vibe. It is an exquisite example of wearable luxurious from one of the most important houses of the modern era. Measurements Bust: 36-37 inches Waist: 26 inches Hips: up to 39 inches Sleeve Length: 24 inches Total Length: 46 inches This vintage Givenchy Haute-Couture 72436 numbered dress...Category
1990s Cocktail Dresses
- Deadstock 1960s Alvin Handmacher Light Blue Rhinestone Vintage 60s Skirt SuitLocated in San Diego, CAChic deadstock ( brand new with tags ) original 1960s Alvin Handmacher ( Weathervane Tailored by Handmacher ) baby blue skirt suit ! Features a tailore...Category
1960s American Skirt Suits