The announcement last July of Valentino Garavani's retirement from the beloved fashion house he founded with his partner Giancarlo Giammetti 45 years ago ago unleashed a torrent of tributes, parties, books, news coverage, a gala, a museum retrospective in Rome and houpla the likes of which the fashion world has rarely seen. It all culminated this past week with the unveiling of Valentino's last haute couture collection at Paris' Musee Rodin followed by a ceremony at the Hotel de Ville de Paris during which the Grande Médaille de Vermeil de la Ville de Paris was bestowed upon him by the Mayor of Paris, Bertrand Delanoe. Oh yes, and there's Matt Tyrnauer's documentary film, Valentino: The Last Emperor, which is set to debut during the Cannes Film Festival in May. And, come to think of it, there's a second museum retrospective set to open at Paris' Louvre Museum in June. There's also the museum he and Giammetti are opening in Rome. (Source) So much for tending to his rose garden and coterie of pugs.
It's not that I don't love Valentino. I most emphatically do. I love his understated elegance, his consistency, his longevity and his inimitable style. The few pieces of Valentino that I own, I will treasure forever. I'm also rather sad that he's retiring - his departure, along with Hubert de Givenchy's and Yves Saint-Laurent's a few years ago, marks the end of a golden era of fashion and to be honest, I'm not too optimistic about the future of fashion given current trends. It's also not that he shouldn't be honored. Few designers have managed to accomplish this level of recognition and widespread admiration and the accolades are entirely well deserved. This said, I think that now that he has retired and has ostensibly passed the baton to his successor*, perhaps it would be time for him to adopt a lower profile if for no other reason than to allow us to move on and thus better focus on Alessandra Facchinetti's debut. Filling the maestro's shoes is a daunting enough task for a young designer. She shouldn't have to fight him for the spotlight too.
Sincerely,
The Luxe Chronicles
* It's unclear what Valentino really thinks of Alessandra Fachinetti's appointment or whether he had any input in her recruitment. In an interview with US Harper's Bazaar prior to her appointment, Valentino suggested that Tom Ford would be the ideal candidate to succeed him. See US Harpers's Bazaar, June 2007, "Valentino: with rumors of his retirement swirling, the designer reflects on six decades in fashion-and why his absence may leave fans seeing red." He has also been quoted as saying that he was never interested in grooming an heir. (Source)
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