Career The Paris years (1949-1959) Valentino became interested in men and women's fashion while in primary school in his native Voghera, Lombardy, northern Italy, when he apprenticed under his aunt Rosa and local designer Ernestina Salvadeo, an aunt of noted artist Aldo Giorgini). At 17, Valentino moved to Paris to pursue this interest with the help of his mother Teresa de Biaggi and his father Mauro Garavani. There he studied at the Ecole des Beaux Arts and at the Chambre Syndicale de la Couture Parisienne. His first choice in Paris was Jacques Fath, then Balenciaga. He then found apprentice jobs with Jean Desses where he used to help style icon countess Jacqueline de Ribes sketch her dress ideas. He then joined Guy Laroche for 2 years. At Desses, Valentino sketched furiously, between helping with window dressing and greeting clients for the daily 2:30 p.m. private showings. Most of his early sketches were lost. At a Rome exhibition in 1991 a smattering went on display and current clients at that time such as Marie Hlne de Rothschild and Elizabeth Taylor marveled that the DNA of Valentino's style was already apparent in the layers of white pleats and animal prints. A wedding dress by Valentino After five years, Valentino left Jean Desses under a cloud over an incident about prolonging a vacation in St. Tropez that still makes him wriggle uncomfortably today. Rescued by his friend Guy Laroche, he joined his "tiny, tiny" fashion house. After discussions with his parents, he decided to return to Italy and set up in Rome in 1959. Rome:(1959-1962) In 1959 Valentino left Paris and moved back to Italy with his lover, French socialite Gerald Nanty and opened a fashion house in Rome on the posh Via Condotti with the backing of his father and an associate of his. More than an atelier, the premises resembled a real "maison de couture", being it very much on the line of what Valentino had seen in Paris: everything was very grand and models flew in from Paris for his first show. Valentino became known for his red dresses, in the bright shade that became known in the fashion industry as "Valentino red". On 31 July 1960 Valentino met Giancarlo Giammetti at the Caf de Paris on the Via Veneto in Rome. One of three children, Giammetti was in his second year of architecture school, living at home with his parents in the haut bourgeois Parioli section of Northern Rome. That day Giammetti gave Valentino a lift home in his little Fiat and a friendship as well as a long-lasting partnership started. The day after, Giammetti was to leave for Capri for vacation and by coincidence Valentino was also going there so they met again in the island 10 days later. Giammetti would shortly after abandon the University to become Valentino's business partner. When Giammetti arrived, the business situation of Valentino's atelier was in fact not brilliant: in one year he had spent so much money that his father's associate pulled out of the business, and had to fight against bankruptcy. Breakthrough in Florence (1962-1967) Valentino's international debut took place in 1962 in Florence, the Italian fashion capital of the time. His first show at the Pitti Palace was welcomed as a true revelation and the young couturier was deluged by orders from foreign buyers and enthusiastic comments on the press. Then breakthrough show in Florence, Valentino started to dress the ladies of the international best-dressed crowd such as his acquaintance from the Paris years Countess Jacqueline de Ribes and New York socialites Babe Paley and Jayne Wrightsman. In 1966, confident of his client base, he moved his shows from Florence to Rome and there, two years later, he had one of his greatest triumphs, an all-white collection, which became famous for the "V" logo he designed. By the mid-1960s he was already considered the undisputed maestro of Italian Couture, receiving in 1967 the Neiman Marcus Fashion Award, the equivalent of an Oscar in the field of fashion. The Begum Aga Khan, Farah Diba, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Lee Radziwill, Queen Paola of Belgium, Babe Paley, Elizabeth Taylor, Audrey Hepburn, Gloria Guinness, Marella Agnelli, Jayne Wrightsman, Marisa Berenson, Veruschka and Princess Margaret were already customers as well as personal friends. Jaqueline Kennedy (1964) At some point in 1964, Jacqueline Kennedy had seen Gloria Schiff, the twin sister of the Rome-based fashion editor of American Vogue and Valentino's friend Consuelo Crespi, wearing a two-piece ensemble in black organza at a gathering. It made such an impression that Kennedy contacted Ms. Schiff to learn the name of the ensemble's designer Valentino. In September 1964, Valentino was to be in the U.S. to present a collection of his work at a charity ball at New York's famed Waldorf-Astoria Hotel. Mrs. Kennedy wanted to see the collection but could not attend the event, so Valentino decided to send a model, sales representative and a selection of key pieces from his collection to Mrs. Kennedy's apartment on Fifth Avenue. Mrs. Kennedy ordered six of his haute couture dresses, all in black and white, and wore them during her year of mourning following President John F. Kennedy's assassination. From then on, she was a devoted client and would become a friend. Valentino would later design the white dress worn by Kennedy at her wedding to Greek tycoon Aristotle Onassis. 1970s Throughout the 1970s Valentino spent considerable time in New York City where his presence was embraced by society personalities such as Vogue's editor-in-chief Diana Vreeland and the art icon Andy Warhol. The Accademia Valentino 1989 marked the opening of the Accademia Valentino, designed by Architect Tommaso Ziffer, a cultural space located near his atelier in Rome, for the presentation of art exhbitions. The next year, encouraged by their friend Elizabeth Taylor, Valentino Garavani and Giancarlo Giammetti created L.I.F.E., an association for the support of AIDS-related patients, which benefits from the activities of the Accademia Valentino. From HDP group to Marzotto group In 1998 Valentino and his partner Giancarlo Giammetti sold the company for approximately $300 million to HdP, an Italian conglomerate controlled, in part, by the late Gianni Agnelli, the head of Fiat. In 2002, Valentino S.p.A., with revenues of more than $180 million, was sold by HdP to Marzotto Apparel, a Milan-based textile giant, for $210 million. Personal life Love and family Valentino and Giammetti have been together over 50 years. Neither ever discussed their relationship with anyone outside their closest circle of friends, not even with their mothers. Athough it was discussed in the film Valentino:The Last Emperor. Valentino's mother, Teresa, moved from Voghera to Rome to help with the business. Eventually he told both his parents that he was engaged to Italian actress Maril Tolo, the only woman he had ever truly loved and with whom he had wished to have children. Lgion d'honneur On Thursday, 6 July 2006 President Chirac of France awarded Valentino the final jewel in the crown of his achievements: Chevalier de la Lgion d'honneur from the country where he arrived as a 17-year-old Italian boy - and fell in love with haute couture. "I am very honored", said Valentino, who has gleaned awards from across the world from his native Italy to America. "French people are charming, adorable but not extremely generous with foreigners, but they believe in what they do. I feel proud in exchange because what I did in restoration is something I did for La France." (Herald Tribune) Valentino was referring to restoring Wideville, his Louis XIII chateau outside Paris. Patrons of Art Both Valentino and Giancarlo Giammetti are renowned for their extensive collection of art spread among their homes around the world including Picasso, Cy Twombly, Balthus, Damien Hirst. In the 1980s they became close friends (and clients) of Thomas Ammann with whom they shared their passion for Warhol and Twombly especially, "...it was Thomas Ammann who taught us to love art...". Luxurious Lifestyle Valentino Garavani with Liz Hurley at the Cannes Film Festival. Valentino and Giammetti's lifestyle has always been flamboyant to the extreme. John Fairchild, editor-at-large at Women's Wear Daily and W, told Vanity Fair (August 2004): Valentino and Giancarlo are the kings of high living. Every other designer looks and says, ow do they live the way they do? I don think they made the money that Valentino and Giancarlo did, because Giancarlo knows how to make money. If they did, they didn spend the money like Valentino. No other designer ever did. When the terrorism first started in Rome - the period when the Red Brigades were kidnapping people - Valentino was riding around in a bulletproof Mercedes. And do you know what color the Mercedes was? Red. My God, I thought, you must want to get blown up. Valentino owns multiple villas and apartments around the world, all boasting an extensive array of art pieces: Palazzo Mignanelli near the Spanish steps in Rome and a villa on the Via Appia Antica, a major historical landmark of Rome, Chalet Gifferhorn in Gstaad, Switzerland. In France, the Chateau de Wideville, a castle on 120acres (0.49km2) in Davron, about 30 minutes outside Paris which he bought in 1998 and had meticulously restored by the late Henri Samuel, the dean of French interior design. The castle had been previously decorated by the late Renzo Mongiardino, the greatest of the Italian decorators, who also worked on Valentino's Roman villa and Giammetti's Tuscan house. Built circa 1600, the castle was once the home of Claude de Bullion, the finance minister for Louis XIII, who slept at Wideville, according to a plaque in the castle, on January 22, 1634. During the reign of Louis XIV, Madame de la Valliere, one of his mistresses, lived at Wideville. Her bedroom, a mirrored-walled chapel with a 30-foot (9.1m)-high ceiling, was converted into a bathroom. Valentino also has an apartment near the Frick Museum overlooking Central Park, New York and one of the largest private houses in London's Holland Park, a 19th-century mansion whose centerpiece is the grand salon, which features five late Picassos. The breakfast room is lined with 200 Meissen plates, and the small salon has two Basquiat paintings and a painting by Damien Hirst. His villa on the cliffs of Capri has recently been sold. Valentino also spends much time on T. M. Blue One, his hundred-and-fifty-two-foot long yacht boasting a full-time staff of eleven, and a selection of art ranging from Picassos to Andy Warhol. He frequently visits Giancarlo Giammetti's residences: the penthouses in Via Condotti in Rome and on the Quai D'Orsay in Paris, or the country estate in Cetona, Tuscany. Extended Family An enlarged family: Giancarlo, Carlos, Charlene, Anthony and Sean He is loved by a small group of friends which has become a real family for him; his business associate life partner, Giancarlo Giammetti, Brazilian brothers Sean and Anthony Souza, as well as their parents, Carlos Souza and socialite Charlene Shorto de Ganay, Souza's ex-wife, who are both Valentino's public relations representatives. Carlos Souza met Valentino and Giammetti in 1973 in Rio de Janeiro when he was 18 years old. Valentino and Giammetti are also the godfathers of Anthony and Sean. Giammetti confided to Vanity Fair that "this family has stayed together because of me, because when Valentino gets mad he cuts - that is that. I remember when Carlos left and moved to Brazil and married Charlene. Valentino refused to speak to him, but I always talked to Carlos. Then one day Carlos called and said he had a baby boy, Sean. I handed the phone to Valentino, and he started to cry and cry".[citation needed] Spanish Muses: Nati Abascal and Rosario Nadal Throughout his career, Valentino has been deeply inspired by many glamorous women. Some of them have become very close friends, making up what is referred to as the Valentino's "family". This includes Spanish socialites Nati Abascal, a former model who was married to the Duke of Feria, and Rosario Nadal, the ex wife of Kyrill, Prince of Preslav. Valentino met Nati Abascal in 1968 at a party when she was a 19 year old model and brought her to Capri. Rosario of Bulgaria met Valentino in her native Majorca in the 90s via Carlos Souza at a club. Another close friend of Valentino is his former PR French-Brazilian Georgina Brandolini, who worked for Valentino for 18 years before leaving for Balmain and ultimately starting a fashion career on her own. The Valentino entourage often travels together everywhere around the world for vacation, moving between Valentino's and Giammetti's various homes around the world and in summertime to the yacht, where for a period in the 90s, Giammetti made everyone except Valentino do needlepoint. Valentino's PR Daniela Giardina, architect Tommaso Ziffer, a close friend of Giancarlo Giammetti, and actress Gwyneth Paltrow are also part of the group. Since Marzotto group's acquisition of Valentino from HDP group, Matteo Marzotto and his socialite mother, Marta Marzotto, often join the party. Maude, Margot, Monty, Molly, Milton and Maggie Valentino adores dogs to the point that he once named a second line of clothing after his late pug Oliver. Today Valentino owns six pugs: the mother, Molly; her sons, Milton and Monty; and her daughters, Margot, Maude and Maggie. When traveling on his 14-seat Challenger jet, three cars are needed to move Valentino and his entourage to the airport: one to move Valentino and Giammetti, another for the luggage and the staff and a third to transport five of six Valentino's pugs as one of them, Maude, always travels with Valentino. Giammetti told Vanity Fair (August 2004): Valentino is embarrassed to be seen traveling with so many dogs. People look at him enough as it is. He often asks his valets to bring the pugs out of the car after he has boarded the plane, sometimes in two shifts so that there seem to be fewer animals. After take-off Maude is released by a butler. She runs forward and jumps up on Valentino's lap, but before she can settle in, another staff member appears with a light-blue linen cloth, which he unfurls and places under the dog to minimize the effects of shedding. At lunchtime Maude is returned to her fellow pugs. Other appearances Movie appearances In 2006 Valentino appeared in a cameo role, as himself, in the hit movie The Devil Wears Prada. One of the DVD's featurettes is called "Getting Valentino" and shows an interview of the designer and Valentino backstage with the movie's actresses, Meryl Streep and Anne Hathaway, his partner Giancarlo Giammetti, and his PRs Carlos de Souza and Charlene Shorto de Ganay. Valentino Film - "Valentino: The Last Emperor" Valentino: The Last Emperor a feature-length documentary on the designer premiered at the 2008 Venice International Film Festival. Produced and directed by Matt Tyrnauer, Special Correspondent for Vanity Fair magazine, the film follows Valentino and his inner circle throughout various events, including last year's anniversary show celebrating his 45 years of career. In production from June 2005 to July 2007, the filmmakers shot over 250 hours of footage with exclusive, unprecedented access to Valentino and his entourage. "We were let in to the inner circle, but we had to stick it out for a long time, practically move in, to capture the truly great moments", says Tyrnauer. "Valentino is surrounded by a tight-knit family of friends and employees, but, eventually, their guard came down and they forgot there was a camera crew in the room." The film had its North American premiere at the 2008 Toronto International Film Festival. It was released theatrically in the U.S. on March 18 in New York and selected cities. Indiewire called it the highest-grossing documentary debut of 2009. 45th Anniversary Valentino Museum During the festivities for the 45th year of Valentino's career, the Mayor of Rome, Walter Veltroni, announced that the site of the Valentino museum would be a building in via San Teodoro in Rome, between the Palatine hill and the Bocca della Verit (mouth of truth). 45 years of Valentino: 6-8 July 2007, Rome A collection of black dresses by Valentino at the Museo Ara Pacis in Rome In order to celebrate the 45th anniversary of Valentino's career a fashion extravaganza took place in Rome between 6th and 8 July 2007. Festivities started on Thursday 5 July with a dinner for Valentino's assistants and employees at Ristorante Gusto and ended on Sunday 8 July with the launch of a perfume and a brunch at the French Academy of Villa Medici. The main five exclusive golden invitation cards have been sent from the Valentino headquarters for the main weekend's events: 6 July 2007 at 7:30 pm: inauguration of the exhibit "Valentino in Rome, 45 years of style" designed by Patrick Kinmonth and Antonio Monfreda at the ancient sacrificial altar Ara Pacis showcasing Valentino's most important creations from the past 45 years. Valentino has gone through his archives and his clients' closets to narrow down his choices to about 300. 6 July 2007 post-exhibit gala dinner at the Temple of Venus in the Imperial Forum. Dating back to 135 A.C. and dedicated to Emperor Hadrian the forum had never been opened to any event. Oscar-winning designer Dante Ferretti (The Aviator, Gangs of New York, The Age of Innocence) re-created the monument's long-lost columns in fibre glass, a special procedure called anastilosys. Valerio Festi designed a spectacular performance by high-wire ballerinas (costumed in exaggerated versions of the designer's ball gowns or signature lipstick-red evening dresses), who moved with poetic grace to Maria Callas's haunting arias, with the Coliseum, bathed in red and mauve light, as a breathtaking backdrop. The plexigas structure remained for the summer for tourists to enjoy. Culture Minister Francesco Rutelli also revealed that Valentino contributed to the restoration of the Temple with a donation of 200,000 euros. 7 July at 5.00 pm: fashion show for 1000 people. For the first time after 16 years Valentino's Haute Couture fashion show will not take place in Paris during the HC fashion week but in Rome. Socialite and long-time Valentino fan Marina Palma took over the fashionable Bolognese restaurant for a tribute lunch before the international guest list set off for the designer's bravura couture runway show. The fashion setting was two halls called Sala Incisa and Sala Baglivi of the restructured 16th century Santo Spirito in Saxia complex, next to Castel Sant'Angelo and the Vatican. Valentino showed about 61 couture dresses, a record number considering an HC show never shows more than 40 gowns. The collection referenced many of the leitmotifs revealed in the retrospective at Ara Pacis and was a tour de force of the flawless and unmatchable techniques that Valent
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