Donatella Versace

Versace at the Time 100 Gala 2010

Donatella Versace (born May 2, 1955 in Reggio Calabria , Italy ) is an Italian fashion designer . She is the sister of the late Gianni Versace and has been chief designer at Versace since 1997 .

Career

Early years

Donatella Versace was born in Reggio Calabria as the youngest daughter of her family. Her father was a personal banker of the Italian aristocracy. An older sister, Tina Versace, died at the age of ten from a poorly treated tetanus infection . Her brother, Santo Versace , owns 30% of Versace's shares.

breakthrough

In the mid-1970s she studied economics. On her free weekends she visited her brother in his studio and after completing her studies she lived with him in an apartment in Milan . Originally she wanted to take on the PR work for Gianni, but he valued Donatella more as a muse and critic. In the 1990s, Gianni dedicated the perfume “Blonde” to her and handed her the artistic direction of the young Versace label Versus .

Career

After the death of her brother in 1997, Donatella took over the management of the fashion house, in which she holds 20% of the capital. Her solo debut followed with the screening of the main line's spring collection in 1998. In July 1998, she held her first haute couture fashion show. Versace currently controls the production and runs the fashion shows for the Versace label. In order to continue to make the brand better known worldwide, she personally dresses celebrities such as Eric Clapton , Jennifer Lopez and Lady Gaga . Gaga dedicated the song Donatella to Versace in 2013 , which appeared on Gaga's album Artpop .

Lopez's silk chiffon gown worn at the 42nd Grammy Awards
Clapton's Versace Suit worn on the Journeyman World Tour
Lady Gaga during a performance in Versace stage outfit

Private

Donatella was married to former model Paul Beck and has a son, Daniel, and a daughter, Allegra .

Awards

In 2005 Versace received the Women's World Award in the World Fashion Award category. In 2010 she was nominated for the Do Something With Style Award from VH1 . It was nominated because Versace donated tote bag sales to Starlight and ONE Foundations.

Charity

Donatella Versace is a supporter of the Elton John AIDS Foundation .

Movie

The family history of the Versaces was filmed for American television under the title House of Versace - A Life for Fashion . The film first aired in 2013 and Donatella Versace is played in it by Gina Gershon . Season 2 of the American television series American Crime Story deals with the murder of Gianni Versace . Here Donatella Versace is portrayed by Penélope Cruz .