We take it up a notch and top ourselves with the world's largest exhibition of Gianni Versace since our first in Berlin. And again we are among the TOP TEN fashion exhibitions in the world.
The Largest Retrospective Ever
This colourful and daring GIANNI VERSACE RETROSPECTIVE exhibition takes visitors inside the eccentric Italian fashion designer’s world of extravagant clothing and lavish catwalk shows in which clothing, pop music and design come spectacularly together.
| START | : 3 December 2022 |
| END | : 7 May 2023 |
| OPENING EVENT | : Press Conference & Tour, VIP Show, Party |
| VENUE NAME | : Groninger Museum |
The exhibition takes place in the spectacular Groninger Museum, designed by Italian postmodern designer Alessandro Mendini and opened in 1994. As a contemporary of Gianni Versace, the building underscores the cultural-historical context of Gianni Versace's work in a special way.
The exhibition "Gianni Versace Retrospective" in the Groninger Museum has been completely redesigned and curated. The impressive design of the rooms was created in collaboration with the well-known Parisian set designer Nathalie Criniére. Ultimately new aspects of Gianni Versace's work are shown: early looks from the 70's, his grunge designs, and the latest collections. Of course, the exhibition also presents his iconic pieces. For the first time in cooperation with the New York "Metropolitan Museum". This provides two looks: the famous safety pin dress by Liz Hurley and a dress that Princess Diana was photographed in by Patrick Demarchelier. On the upper level of the exhibition, a third of all the looks from Gianni Versace's famous runway show from March 1991 (Freedom! '90 show) are re-staged on a catwalk. In addition to the 147 looks, the exhibition also shows a plethora of the books by Gianni Versace, his catalogues and perfumes for the first time. Numerous photographs (ad campaigns), footages, and interviews give the visitor an intensive, emotional introduction to Gianni Versace's world on an area of 1,800 square meters.
S/S 1994,
Liz Hurley’s appearance in that dress at the premiere of the movie Four Weddings and A Funeral, is considered one of the most impactful fashion moments of the 1990s. The large cut-outs of the figure-embracing dress appear to be held together precariously with large kilt pins. The revealing nature of the dress ignited outrage in the media, causing the at the time little known actress to be catapulted into the spotlight overnight.
Loan by the Costume Institute of the Metropolitan Museum.
01 January 1993,
South Beach Stories reached cult-status from the very beginning: the 600 copies brought to its launch at the Bloomingdales department store in New York sold out within minutes. In an array of colourful photographs, illustrations, and collages, the siblings’ tropical dreams come together as a kaleidoscopic impression of the Art Deco neighbourhood. Proceeds of the book were donated to the Italian AIDS foundation ANLAIDS.
A/W 1991-92,
Post-divorce, Princess Diana was often spotted in Gianni Versace’s designs. Her stylist Anna Harvey noted that this was “probably her most successful look”. Versace and the former princess had met through their mutual friend, Elton John. The designer’s publication Rock & Royalty was dedicated to his two close friends, with Diana contributing to the catalogue. Proceeds from the sale of the publication went to the Elton John AIDS Foundation.
Loan by the Costume Institute of the Metropolitan Museum.
Maritime life, nautical stripes, American muscle cars, Art Deco architecture, and the brightly intense colours of the South, were just a few of the many visual impressions of Miami Beach that Gianni Versace integrated into his prints from 1992 onwards. To Gianni Versace Miami Beach was familiar in the sense that it was by the sea and its streets were lined with palm trees. Life in America offered the designer a lively, decadent, and free atmosphere.
It was love at first sight when Gianni Versace first saw the Casa Casuarina, leading him to acquire the neo-colonial villa just off Ocean Drive in 1992. The residence had been built on commission of philanthropist and architect Alden Freeman in the 1930s, a Miami Beach socialite who was known for his ‘eccentricity’ and ‘flamboyance’. Versace restored the property to its original state and outfitted it with an interior fit for a Renaissance prince, including a garden with a grand pool and a Medusa mosaic based on the design of a Versace scarf.
“The Image Maker”, The Advocate, 11 July 1995, Reproduction, wall-mounted vinyl
Gianni Versace’s interview with the Advocate is considered as the moment in which the designer, who had been together with his partner Antonio D’Amico for 13 years, publicly came out. As the USA’s oldest and most established LGBT newsmagazine, founded in 1967 when homosexuality was still illegal, the publication had published a number of coming-out interviews with celebrities over the years.
While Versace himself only hints at his sexual orientation, his friend Richard Martin, curator at the Metropolitan Museum of Art is quoted as saying: “There is no question that Versace’s own gay identity has been a part of his work.”
Team Gianni
Doris Brugger, Rossella Catapano, Bruno Gianesi
Private Collectors
Doriana & Salvatore Alderuccio, Antonio Caravano with Sabina Albano, Dreamrealizer and Franco Jacassi
Costume Institute Collection
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
10 MILLION
MEDIA IMPACT
118 000 VISITORS
MORE THAN 650
COLLECTION PIECES
DAILY TICKET
SALES
"Viva Gianni Versace, ontwerper van zijn eigen, barokke epoque"
"Hoe een nederlands topmodel bevriend raakte met Gianni Versace"
"Kunstzinnige collages: grootste retrospectief ooit over Gianni Versace opent in Groninger Museum"
"In het Groninger Museum is een groot retrospectief te zien van Gianni Versace, de toonaangevende modeontwerper met zeer uiteenlopende inspiratiebronnen!"
"Gianni Versace: één van de meest vooruitstrevende mode iconen ooit"
"In het Groninger Museum is Versace opvallend goed op zijn plaats"
"Dutch Museum to Stage Major Exhibition on Gianni Versace"
"Del vestido de imperdibles a su carácter visionario: la mayor exposición sobre Gianni Versace aterriza en Países Bajos"
"EXHIBITION TO VISIT IN GRONINGEN: Die Gianni Versace Retrospektive"
"Grootste expo ooit over Gianni Versace, 25 jaar na zijn dood: ‘Goede smaak bestaat niet"
"La retrospettiva su Gianni Versace al Groninger Museum, un’ode allo splendore del designer italiano"
P U B L I C A T I O N S » worldwide media coverage
NATIONAL PRESS/MEDIA
Newspaper: De Volkskrant, NCR, Trouw, Het Financieele Dagblad, Groninger Internet Courant, The Northern Times, Dagblad van het Noorden, It Nijs, DutchNews.NL
TV/Radio: NPO, RTL Koffietijd, RTL Boulevard, SBS HLF8, SBS Shownieuws, OOG TV, NPO Radio 1, RTV Noord
Magazine: Vogue, L'Officiel, ELLE, Marie Claire, Mirror Mirror, Nouveau, Beau Monde, Gras Magazine, Winq., MODMOD, Jan-Magazine, Cultuurpers, Groninger Museum (exclusive shooting Marpessa Hennink by Tim Verhallen)
Press Portal: AD, NU, MSN
INTERNATIONAL PRESS/MEDIA
Newspaper: El Pais, Rheinische Post, Bellevue NZZ, De Morgen, Il nuovo Trentino
TV/Radio: RAI, Athina 98.4 FM Radio,
Magazine: WWD, V Magazine, Dazed, Russh Australia, ELLE UK, Textilwirtschaft, Fashion United, weekend.at, Knack Weekend, Le Vif Weekend, Marie Claire Korea, the edge Singapor, Ladylike.gr, io donna (Corriere della Sera), MF Fashion, Luxury prêt à porter, 2Luxury2, ITSLIQUID,
> Vogue Spain, -Singapore
> Haper's Bazaar Italy, -Malaysia
Blogs and posts (social media) are not listed.
The measurements are a result of the evaluation of the media monitoring and analysis.
147 MILLION FOR VERSACE
9 MILLION FOR GIANNI VERSACE
– Google search results
AUDIENCE PROFILE
60% female | 40% male
33 Average Age
GEN Z | Millennials | Baby-Boomers
CROSSOVER
30% Internet | 24% Breaking News | 20% Passing Trade | 15% Recommendation | 11% Others
SOCIAL MEDIA
#gianniversaceretrospective 3,9K posts
ACTIVE WEBSITE USER
1K monthly
The exhibition opened on December 2, 2022 - on the occasion of Gianni Versace's 76th birthday. Over 1200 guests and members of the media lined up around the museum. The evening started with what is probably Pavarotti's most famous aria, Nessun Dorma, followed by speeches by Giorgio Novello, the Italian ambassador and Andreas Blühm, the director of the Groninger Museum. Part of the program was a round tour, a dance performance inspired by Gianni Versace's work and a talk show about fashion moderated by Splinter Chabot (TV presenter and author) together with Cécile Narinx (the fashion guru of the Netherlands), Frénk van der Linden (journalist), Hans Ubbink (Dutch fashion designer), Ramiro Koeiman (Dutch bespoke tailor), Bas Kosters (Dutch fashion designer), Thijs Boontjes (Dutch musician). It was celebrated until late at night to 80s and 90s disco music.
ARIA | DJ | DANCE PERFORMANCE | TALK SHOW | VIRTUAL PHOTO STUDIO | ROUND TOUR
