FAREWELL TO A FASHION TITAN

Royalty and A-listers pay tribute to the designer who brought classic Italian elegance to the red carpet

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So revered was Valentino Garavani in the worlds of fashion and celebrity that he belonged to that rare club of people who are more recognisable without their surnames.

The fashion designer, who died in Rome on 19 January at the age of 93, drew acclaim from royalty, supermodels and film stars for the way he transformed fashion across six decades.

Gwyneth Paltrow, Elizabeth Hurley, Colman Domingo, Kim Kardashian, Donatella Versace and Princess Madeleine of Sweden were among those who paid tribute to a man who lionised femininity with his signature motifs of bows, ruffles and lace, plus his trademark shade of “Valentino red”.

His designs were favoured by the first ladies of celebrity, including Diana, Princess of Wales, Princess Grace of Monaco, Audrey Hepburn, Elizabeth Taylor and Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, who urged him to “live a hundred years”. He almost obliged.

Claudia Schiffer recalled “the special times when I got to bring his creations to life, on and off the runway”, as well as her holidays with the designer in Majorca, Ibiza and Saint-Tropez.

“My Valentino wedding gown... I have framed at home as a reminder of his gentle, generous, sweet and loyal nature. Having him create it was one of the great honors of my life, a moment I will cherish forever,” she wrote on Instagram.