Valentino, designer whose gowns made royals and movie stars feel
beautiful, dies at 93
[January 20, 2026]
By JENNY BARCHFIELD and COLLEEN BARRY
MILAN (AP) — Valentino Garavani, the jet-set Italian designer whose
high-glamour gowns — often in his trademark shade of “Valentino red” —
were fashion show staples for nearly half a century, died Monday. He was
93.
“Valentino Garavani was not only a constant guide and inspiration for
all of us, but a true source of light, creativity and vision,″ the
foundation founded by Valentino and his partner Giancarlo Giammetti said
in a statement posted on social media. The foundation said he died at
his Rome residence but did not mention the cause.
Universally known by his first name, Valentino was adored by generations
of royals, first ladies and movie stars, from Jackie Kennedy Onassis to
Julia Roberts and Queen Rania of Jordan, who swore the designer always
made them look and feel their best.
“I know what women want,” he once remarked. “They want to be beautiful.”
Though Italian-born and despite maintaining his atelier in Rome, he
mostly unveiled his collections in Paris, and spoke French with his
Italian partner Giammetti, an entrepreneur.
Alessandro Michele, the current creative director of the Valentino
fashion house, wrote in Instagram that he continues to feel Valentino's
“gaze” as he works on the next collection, which will be presented March
12 in Rome, departing from the usual venue of Paris. Michele remembered
Valentino as “a man who expanded the limits of the possible” and
possessing "a rare delicacy, with a silent rigor and a limitless love
for beauty.''
Another of Valentino’s successors, Pierpaolo Piccoli, placed a broken
heart emoji under the announcement of his death. Former supermodel Cindy
Crawford wrote that she was “heartbroken,” and called Valentino "a true
master of his craft.''
Condolences also came in from the family of the late designer Giorgio
Armani, who died in September at the age of 91, and Donatella Versace,
who posted two photos of Valentino, saying "he will forever be
remembered for his art.''
Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni remembered Valentino as “an indisputable
maestro of eternal style and elegance of Italian high fashion.”
Never one for edginess or statement dressing, Valentino made precious
few fashion faux pas throughout his nearly half-century career, which
stretched from his early days in Rome in the 1960s through to his
retirement in 2008.
His fail-safe designs made Valentino the king of the red carpet, the
go-to man for A-listers’ awards ceremony needs. His sumptuous gowns have
graced countless Academy Awards, notably in 2001, when Roberts wore a
vintage black and white column to accept her best actress statue. Cate
Blanchett also wore Valentino — a one-shouldered number in butter-yellow
silk — when she won the Oscar for best supporting actress in 2005.
Valentino was also behind the long-sleeved lace dress Jacqueline Kennedy
wore for her wedding to Greek shipping magnate Aristotle Onassis in
1968. Kennedy and Valentino were close friends for decades, and for a
spell the one-time U.S. first lady wore almost exclusively Valentino.
He was also close to Diana, Princess of Wales, who often donned his
sumptuous gowns.
Beyond his signature orange-tinged shade of red, other Valentino
trademarks included bows, ruffles, lace and embroidery; in short,
feminine, flirty embellishments that added to the dresses’ beauty and
hence to that of the wearers.
Perpetually tanned and always impeccably dressed, Valentino shared the
lifestyle of his jet-set patrons. In addition to his 152-foot (46-meter)
yacht and an art collection including works by Picasso and Miro, the
couturier owned a 17th-century chateau near Paris with a garden said to
boast more than a million roses.
Valentino and his longtime partner Giammetti flitted among their homes —
which also included places in New York, London, Rome, Capri and Gstaad,
Switzerland — traveling with their pack of pugs. The pair regularly
received A-list friends and patrons, including Madonna and Gwyneth
Paltrow.
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Fashion designer Valentino Garavani during a photo-call to present
the documentary film "Valentino: The Last Emperor" in Rome, Monday,
Nov. 16, 2009. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino, File)
 “When I see somebody and
unfortunately she’s relaxed and running around in jogging trousers
and without any makeup ... I feel very sorry,” the designer told RTL
television in a 2007 interview. “For me, woman is like a beautiful,
beautiful flower bouquet. She has always to be sensational, always
to please, always to be perfect, always to please the husband, the
lover, everybody. Because we are born to show ourselves always at
our best.”
Valentino was born into a well-off family in the northern Italian
town of Voghera on May 11, 1932. He said it was his childhood love
of cinema that set him down the fashion path.
“I was crazy for silver screen, I was crazy for beauty, to see all
those movie stars being sensation, well dressed, being always
perfect,” he explained in the 2007 television interview.
After studying fashion in Milan and Paris, he spent much of the
1950s working for established Paris-based designer Jean Desses and
later Guy Laroche before striking out on his own. He founded the
house of Valentino on Rome’s Via Condotti in 1959.
From the beginning, Giammetti was by his side, handling the business
aspect while Valentino used his natural charm to build a client base
among the world’s rich and fabulous.
After some early financial setbacks — Valentino’s tastes were always
lavish, and the company spent with abandon — the brand took off.
Early fans included Italian screen sirens Gina Lollobrigida and
Sophia Loren, as well as Hollywood stars Elizabeth Taylor and Audrey
Hepburn. Legendary American Vogue editor-in-chief Diana Vreeland
also took the young designer under her wing.
Over the years, Valentino’s empire expanded as the designer added
ready-to-wear, menswear and accessories lines to his stable.
Valentino and Giammetti sold the label to an Italian holding company
for an estimated $300 million in 1998. Valentino would remain in a
design role for another decade.
In 2007, the couturier feted his 45th anniversary in fashion with a
3-day blowout in Rome, capped with a grand ball in the Villa
Borghese gallery.
Valentino retired in 2008 and was briefly replaced by fellow Italian
Alessandra Facchinetti, who had stepped into Tom Ford’s shoes at
Gucci before being sacked after two seasons.
Facchinetti’s tenure at Valentino proved equally short. As early as
her first show for the label, rumors swirled that she was already on
her way out, and just about one year after she was hired,
Facchinetti was indeed replaced by two longtime accessories
designers at the brand, Maria Grazia Chiuri and Pierpaolo Piccioli.
Chiuri left to helm Dior in 2016, and Piccioli continued to lead the
house through a golden period that drew on the launch of the
Rockstud pump with Chiuri and his own signature color, a shade of
fuchsia called Pink PP. He left the house in 2024, later joining
Balenciaga, and has been replaced by Michele, who revived Gucci’s
stars with romantic, genderless styles.
Valentino is owned by Qatar’s Mayhoola, which controls a 70% stake,
and the French luxury conglomerate Kering, which owns 30% with an
option to take full control in 2028 or 2029. Richard Bellini was
named CEO last September.
A public viewing will be held at the Valentino Garavani and
Giancarlo Giammetti Foundation on Wednesday and Thursday, and a
funeral will be held Friday in the Basilica di Santa Maria degli
Angeli e dei Martiri in central Rome.
___
Barchfield is a former Associated Press writer. Barry reported from
Milan.
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