Rare Early Gianni Versace Black and White Houndstooth Plaid Embroidered Vest Top
About the Item
- Designer:
- Brand:
- Dimensions:Marked Size: 38 (EU)Waist: 30 in (76.2 cm)
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Condition:
- Seller Location:San Diego, CA
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU6622985393
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. 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,” Versace once explained. Instead, he had a sexy good time with fashion — as he did with life. Today, vintage Gianni Versace clothing, handbags and other accessories look astonishingly fresh and freshly relevant.
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 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: San Diego, CA
- Return PolicyA return for this item may be initiated within 3 days of delivery.
- Chic 1960s Lee Jordan Red Tartan Plaid Sequin Vintage 60s Cropped Wool VestLocated in San Diego, CAChic 1960s LEE JORDAN red tartan plaid wool cropped sequin vest ! Features stripes of blue, yellow, black and white. Hundreds of hand-sewn black sequins thr...Category
1960s American Vests
- Vintage Swee Lo 1990s Fully Sequined Stained Glass Beaded Vintage Silk JacketBy SWEE LOLocated in San Diego, CAWonderful vintage 90s SWEE LO fully sequined, beaded and pearl encrusted stained glass silk jacket! Features thousands of hand-sewn sequins, beads and pearls t...Category
1990s Jackets
- Beautiful Vintage Navy Blue Glass Beaded Silk Fringed Cardigan Jacket TopLocated in San Diego, CABeautiful vintage navy blue silk glass beaded cardigan! This beauty features all over hand-sewn glass beads, with beaded fringe on the entire hem. The perfect piece to add onto any o...Category
Late 20th Century Bolero Jackets
- Intricate 1990s Heavily Beaded 3XL Black Silver Sequined Vintage 90s Jacket TopLocated in San Diego, CAAmazing early 1990s 3XL plus size heavily beaded black and silver silk chiffon jacket / cardigan top ! Features multiple layered black silk chiffon...Category
1990s Dinner Jackets
- Spectacular Vintage Sequined and Beaded Silk Jacket All - Over SequinsLocated in San Diego, CASensational vintage silk jacket! Features thousands of hand-sewn sequins and beads throughout. Vibrant pops of color. Wonderful tailored fit, with hook-and-eye closures up the bodice...Category
1990s American Single-Breasted Jackets
- Amazing 1990s ' Day of the Dead ' Plus Size Novelty Vintage 90s Cotton Crop TopLocated in San Diego, CAAmazing 1990s vintage 'Day of the Dead' novelty plus size crop top / vest! Features signature DOTD characters throughout. Four buttons up the front. Interior boning to keep everythin...Category
1990s American Crop Tops
- Saint Laurent Black Gabardine Wool Vest Size 36By Saint LaurentLocated in Paradise Island, BSSaint Laurent Black Gabardine Wool Vest Founded in 1961 by innovative designer Yves Saint Laurent, French luxury fashion house Saint Laurent fuses expert craftsmanship with the labe...Category
2010s Vests
- Dennis Basso Striped Dyed Mink & Silk Twill TopBy Dennis BassoLocated in West Palm Beach, FLDennis Basso striped dyed mink & silk twill top. The front of this gorgeous top is made of mink fur dyed in shades of purple, pink-taupe and grey brown set in a horizontal pattern, t...Category
21st Century and Contemporary American Blouses and Tops
- Moschino Cheap & Chic 1990s Smile and Frown Face Vest Green with Stripe BackBy MoschinoLocated in San Francisco, CAVintage Moschino Cheap & Chic 1990s green vest featuring a happy face on one side and a sad face on the other. (Moschino was way ahead on emoji style!) Red tr...Category
1990s Italian Vests
- Issey Miyake Signature Black HighNeck Double Zipper Deconstructed Sleeves TopBy Issey MiyakeLocated in New York, NYIssey Miyake wonderful signature black double zipper high neck zipper-front optional top or jacket accented with deconstructed sleeves measures 28 inches in length on the fron...Category
1990s Japanese Blouses and Tops
- Dolce & Gabbana Black and Purple Silk Floral Tulip Print Cropped Jacket BoleroBy Dolce & GabbanaLocated in San Francisco, CADolce & Gabbana black and purplish floral tulip print silk cropped bolero with bow detail at front, wide sleeves. Fastens at front with two hidden snap closures. 100% silk. Lined i...Category
2010s Italian Bolero Jackets
- Antonio Berardi New Color Block Shirt JacketBy Antonio BerardiLocated in Water Mill, NYA gorgeous shirt or jacket from Antonio Berardi in solid black and black with white stripes silk cotton blend with a bit of stretch. It has lots of details- fabric roses and ruffles ...Category
Early 2000s Italian Blouses and Tops