Spring Break
Famous designer retires
Issue date: 1/24/08 Section: ARTS
PARIS (AP) - Celebrities, socialites and fashion editors prepared to bid adieu to Italian designer Valentino, the king of the red carpet, who will show his final collection Wednesday after 45 years in business.
Hollywood stars including Uma Thurman and Gwyneth Paltrow were expected to attend the display, being held in a tent at the Rodin Museum at the close of the Paris spring-summer haute couture shows.
The 75-year-old designer was determined to make it a joyful event, even if some of his fans will inevitably shed tears.
"I don't want to be ridiculous, and I don't want to be emotional," he told the International Herald Tribune in an interview this week. "I must be happy. I have had a fantastic career, and I don't regret one moment of it."
Fashion editors paid tribute to the man who has dressed luminaries from Jackie Kennedy Onassis to Julia Roberts in his trademark scarlet gowns and tasteful couture.
"You really can't mention the name Valentino without immediately thinking of glamour," said Glenda Bailey, editor-in-chief of ITALIC Harper's Bazaar magazine.
Valentino shares the lifestyle of his jet set patrons. The perma-tanned and impeccably coiffed couturier owns homes including a chateau near Paris, a 152-foot yacht and an art collection including works by Picasso and Miro.
"He really understood how rich women wanted to dress," Bailey said. "That is something which sounds so obvious but in fact is very rare, and I think he will be dearly missed."
Wednesday's couture line-up also featured Jean Paul Gaultier, who went trawling for new clients with a parade of mermaids in scallop-patterned gowns and chic takes on his trademark striped sailor's top.
Valentino plans to end with a flourish, showing some 75 outfits - almost twice the amount of a normal show.
He celebrated his label's 45th anniversary in July with three days of parties in Rome.
Hollywood stars including Uma Thurman and Gwyneth Paltrow were expected to attend the display, being held in a tent at the Rodin Museum at the close of the Paris spring-summer haute couture shows.
The 75-year-old designer was determined to make it a joyful event, even if some of his fans will inevitably shed tears.
"I don't want to be ridiculous, and I don't want to be emotional," he told the International Herald Tribune in an interview this week. "I must be happy. I have had a fantastic career, and I don't regret one moment of it."
Fashion editors paid tribute to the man who has dressed luminaries from Jackie Kennedy Onassis to Julia Roberts in his trademark scarlet gowns and tasteful couture.
"You really can't mention the name Valentino without immediately thinking of glamour," said Glenda Bailey, editor-in-chief of ITALIC Harper's Bazaar magazine.
Valentino shares the lifestyle of his jet set patrons. The perma-tanned and impeccably coiffed couturier owns homes including a chateau near Paris, a 152-foot yacht and an art collection including works by Picasso and Miro.
"He really understood how rich women wanted to dress," Bailey said. "That is something which sounds so obvious but in fact is very rare, and I think he will be dearly missed."
Wednesday's couture line-up also featured Jean Paul Gaultier, who went trawling for new clients with a parade of mermaids in scallop-patterned gowns and chic takes on his trademark striped sailor's top.
Valentino plans to end with a flourish, showing some 75 outfits - almost twice the amount of a normal show.
He celebrated his label's 45th anniversary in July with three days of parties in Rome.
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