Gianni Versace Couture Black Medusa Chain Shoulder Bag
About the Item
- Designer:
- Dimensions:Height: 6.7 in (17 cm)Width: 3.15 in (8 cm)Length: 9.85 in (25 cm)
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Condition:
- Seller Location:Sheung Wan, HK
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU323222789272
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: Sheung Wan, Hong Kong
- Return PolicyThis item cannot be returned.
- Celine Dark Green Leather Shoulder BagBy CelineLocated in Sheung Wan, HK- Celine dark green leather shoulder bag. - Gold-toned hardware “Celine” turn-lock closure. - Red leather interior with zip pocket closure...Category
1990s Italian Bucket Bags and Drawstring Bags
- Gianni Versace Couture Black Lambskin with Gold Toned "Medusa" Shoulder BagBy Gianni VersaceLocated in Sheung Wan, HK- Vintage 90s Gianni Versace Couture black lambskin shoulder bag. - Featuring gold toned "Medusa" throughout the front flap. - Gold toned "Medusa" on each side of the handle. -...Category
1990s Italian Shoulder Bags
- Pancaldi Colour Blocked Suede Flap Shoulder BagBy PancaldiLocated in Sheung Wan, HK- Vintage 80s Pancaldi colour blocked (red, blue. pink and yellow trim) suede flap shoulder bag. - Featuring a gold toned chain attached with the black suede shoulder strap. - Fl...Category
1980s Italian Shoulder Bags
- Gucci Camel Lambskin Leather Hobo HandbagBy GucciLocated in Sheung Wan, HK- Gucci camel lambskin leather handbag. - Famous hobo style. - Single flat leather handle with gold toned buckles closure. - Interior zip pocket.Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Hobo Bags
- Desmo Dark Navy Pleated Wave Pattern Clutch/Shoulder BagLocated in Sheung Wan, HK- Vintage 90s Desmo dark navy light weight pleated wave pattern clutch/ shoulder bag. - Featuring silver and gold toned hardware outline that support the bag. - Gold toned buckle...Category
1990s Italian Shoulder Bags
- Gianni Versace Black Croc Leather Flap Shoulder BagBy Gianni VersaceLocated in Sheung Wan, HK- Vintage 90s Gianni Versace black embossed croc leather flap shoulder bag. - Medusa logo flap with snap button closure. - Silver toned hardware "Medusa" handle. - Detachable c...Category
1990s Italian Shoulder Bags
- Dior Vintage Diorissimo Black Lady Dior Handbag MediumBy Christian DiorLocated in Montreal, QuebecIntroducing this classic style Dior bag called the Lady Dior which was made famous my Lady Diana in the 1990s. This vintage rendition is made of black leather and features oblique mo...Category
21st Century and Contemporary French Shoulder Bags
- Gucci Vintage Blue Leather Web Stripes Bucket Shoulder BagBy GucciLocated in Rome, RomeVintage Gucci bucket shoulder bag crafted in navy blue leather. Blue/Red/Blue striped detailing on the upper part of the bag. Silver metal GG - GUCCI logo tab on the front. Magnetic ...Category
1980s Italian Bucket Bags and Drawstring Bags
- Gucci Beige Diamante Canvas Leather New Jackie Tote Hobo BagBy GucciLocated in Rome, RomeBeautiful Gucci ' New Jackie' Hobo Bag. The bag is crafted in beige diamante canvas with brown leather trim and shoulder strap. Gold metal piston classic 'Jackie' closure. Beige canv...Category
2010s Italian Hobo Bags
- Gucci Pink Monogram Canvas Mini Ophidia Crossbody BagBy GucciLocated in Rome, RomeThis beautiful Bag will come with a Certificate of Authenticity provided by Entrupy. The certificate will be provided at no further cost Beautiful GUCCI Ophidia mini crossbody bag...Category
2010s Italian Bucket Bags and Drawstring Bags
- Chanel Heart Small Viola Borsa A TracollaBy ChanelLocated in Torre Del Greco, ITBorsa firmata Chanel, modello Heart, misura media, realizzata in pelle trapuntata viola con hardware oro pallido. Dotata di una chiusura superiore a zip e di una tasca frontale con c...Category
2010s Shoulder Bags
- Chanel Ombre Jumbo Grey Double FlapBy ChanelLocated in London, GBThis Chanel bag is a unique and highly desirable piece, made with great precision from ombre grey leather. It has a double-flap design with a spacious main compartment and two interi...Category
2010s Shoulder Bags