SILK ROAD: Known lately for its rotating photography exhibitions, Musée Maillol in Paris will soon host a Gianni Versace retrospective — its first fashion exhibition.
Falling nearly 30 years after the Italian designer’s murder at age 50, the show is slated to run from June 5 to Sept. 6, showcasing nearly 450 artifacts including fashions, accessories, sketches, photographs, decorative objects and rare video interviews, giving an insight into his life’s work and enduring influence.
The museum announced the retrospective Thursday, noting that it was initiated by Berlin-based Dreamrealizer, which in recent years has mounted similar Gianni Versace showcases in Groningen, Netherlands; London, and Málaga, Spain.
“It is not linked to, nor associated with, the Gianni Versace Srl company or the Versace family,” the release clarified.
The exhibition delves into the designer’s upbringing in Calabria and myriad influences, giving an overview of his career and the social context, including the rise of the supermodels, and his association with such music icons as Madonna, Elton John, Prince and George Michael.
Gianni Versace
Courtesy of Dreamrealizer
To be sure, it also highlights his links to Paris, where Versace began showing haute couture collections in 1989 at the Ritz hotel.
The exhibition’s “pop-art scenography” will be by renowned stage designer Nathalie Crinière, who was involved in the Louvre’s blockbuster fashion exhibition last year, in addition to the set design for La Galerie de Dior and the latest renovation of the Pierre Bergé-Yves Saint Laurent Foundation.
Established in 1995 to exalt the work of sculptor Aristide Maillol, the popular museum on Rue de Grenelle has recently put the spotlight on photographers Robert Doisneau, Andres Serrano, Steve McCurry and Elliott Erwitt in addition to the artists Nadia Léger, Chéri Samba and Mykola Tolmachev.
Fashions by Gianni Versace.
Courtesy of Musée Maillol
