1990S GIANNI VERSACE Black, Silver & Gold Beaded Silk Strapless Bustier
About the Item
- Designer:
- Brand:
- Dimensions:Length: 8 in (20.32 cm)Marked Size: XS (US)Bust: 28 in (71.12 cm)Waist: 24 in (60.96 cm)
- Period:
- Condition:
- Seller Location:New York, NY
- Reference Number:
Gianni Versace
The signature extravagance of legendary fashion designer Gianni Versace — forever aligned with glamour, sex, celebrity and spectacle — can overshadow the Italian couturier’s broad and deep engagement with history and culture. Today, his vintage dresses and gowns, handbags, sunglasses and other accessories look astonishingly fresh and freshly relevant.
More than any designer before him, Versace mined celebrity, music and Pop art for inspiration, and his subversive, maximalist and unabashedly seductive designs infused high fashion with an entirely new ethos. “I don’t believe in good taste,” he once explained. Instead, he had a sexy good time with fashion — as he did with life.
Gianni Versace was born in Calabria, Italy. His mother was a successful dressmaker who employed more than 40 seamstresses. As a child, little Gianni marveled at her workshop, which would become a university of sorts, where he learned the exceptional construction techniques that were at the foundation of his creative expression.
In 1972, at age 25, he moved to Milan to work in fashion. He launched his first collection — and his label — in 1978, with his older brother Santo managing the business concerns. Soon, sister Donatella, whom Gianni dressed and took to discos when she was still a child, joined the family venture, where she had a creative role and managed enormously popular ready-to-wear lines such as Versus.
Vintage Versace — and Gianni Versace Couture, which debuted in 1989 — has become catnip for modern fashion enthusiasts who seek out the now-iconic house codes that originated in the designs of the 1980s and 1990s. His glamorous and seductive apparel — the clingy skirts and slender, strappy party dresses, as well as the erotic magazine ads that publicized them — looms large, but Versace’s art and historical influences were also vast.
Versace was an art collector, and he took on commissions to create costumes for theatrical performances during the 1980s and spoke of looking to numerous cultures for inspiration. The New York Times noted in 1997 that the fashion industry “is now driven by contemporary culture because Mr. Versace made it that way.”
Insiders consider his 1991/1992 Autumn/Winter runway show — which featured supermodels Christy Turlington, Cindy Crawford, Naomi Campbell and Linda Evangelista lip-synching George Michael’s “Freedom” — as the moment when the two worlds of fashion and pop culture became one, changing both forever.
Versace's adventurous spirit of design resulted in his creating jewel-toned prints rooted in Grecian motifs, Etruscan symbols, the Italian Baroque and Andy Warholʼs Marilyn Monroe. There were slinky dresses in Oroton, his patented chain-mail textile that draped like satin, and leather bondage ensembles. Sex sold, for both women and men. Wrote the late curator Richard Martin, “[Versace] became the standard-bearer of gay men’s fashion because he eschewed decorum and designed for desire.”
Following Versace’s tragic murder in 1997, Donatella took over the role of artistic director and continued to evolve the house codes with a twist of her feminine and feminist perspective. Today, Santo Versace is chief executive officer of Versace and Donatella is its chief creative officer.
Browse an extraordinary collection of vintage Gianni Versace evening dresses, handbags, day dresses and more on 1stDibs.
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Ships From: New York, NY
- Return PolicyA return for this item may be initiated within 1 day of delivery.
- 1970S Navy Men's Velour Fleece Striped Sleeve Loungewear RobeLocated in New York, NY1970S Navy Men's Velour Fleece Striped Sleeve Loungewear RobeCategory
1970s Robes
- 1950S Black Nylon/Lace Bullet BraLocated in New York, NY1950S Black Nylon/Lace Bullet BraCategory
1950s Bras
- 1930S Black Rayon Slip Dress Lining For Lace Or Sheer Gown XLLocated in New York, NY1930S Black Rayon Slip Dress Lining For Lace Or Sheer Gown XLCategory
1930s Slips
- 1940S Black Paisley Cotton & Rayon Satin Faced Fleece RobeLocated in New York, NY1940S Black Paisley Cotton & Rayon Satin Faced Fleece RobeCategory
1940s Robes
- 1900S Hand Embroidered Silk Antique Edwardian Peacock KimonoRobeLocated in New York, NY1900S Hand Embroidered Silk Antique Edwardian Peacock Kimono RobeCategory
Early 1900s American Jackets
- 1970S Black Sheer Mesh Bodice Nylon Negligee Slip DressLocated in New York, NY1970S Black Sheer Mesh Bodice Nylon Negligee Slip DressCategory
1970s Negligees
- Circa 1940's jersey cocktail dress with pink flowers printedLocated in Saint-Ouen-Sur-Seine, FRjersey cocktail dress with pink flowers printed. Gather in the middle front on the bust, ruffles on the hips, zip on the left side. Size MCategory
1940s American Robes
- Black tulle see-through bodysuit with lace appliqué La Perla ( no brand tag)By La PerlaLocated in Saint-Ouen-Sur-Seine, FRBlack tulle bodysuit with lace appliqué. No brand tag. Adjustable shoulder straps. Hook& eye on the inseam. SIZE SCategory
2010s Unknown Bodysuits
- Beige lace lace bustier with boned and padded Marvel by La PerlaBy La PerlaLocated in Saint-Ouen-Sur-Seine, FRBeige lace lace bustier with boned and padded. Fabric composition: tulle, lace, acetate, nylon, polyamide & elasthane. Zip and hook&eye on the left side.Satin ribbon bow in the mid...Category
2010s Italian Bustles
- Dolce & Gabbana Vintage Floral Under bust Corset Tank TopBy Dolce & GabbanaLocated in London, GBWe are excited to present this Dolce & Gabbana Vintage Floral Under bust Corset Tank Top. Features leather trim with boning, lace front with lace up detail for closure, mesh floral ...Category
Early 2000s Italian Corsets
- F/W 2013 Look # 30 NEW VERSACE T-STRAP EMBELLISHED HARNESS with CRYSTALS 38 - 4By VersaceLocated in Montgomery, TXVERSACE Actual runway sample Fall/Winter 2013 Look # 30 This fully embellished t-strap harness from Versace features spike studs and crystal hardware...Category
2010s Italian Belts
- GIANNI VERSACE COUTURE S/S 1994 Black Sleeveless Circle Cutout Bodysuit TopBy Gianni VersaceLocated in Thiensville, WIVintage Gianni Versace Couture Spring/Summer 1994 "Punk Collection" black bodysuit top. Sleeveless with embroidered circle cutout detail at the chest and upper back. High cut legs. C...Category
1990s Italian Bodysuits