YESTERDAY, when Gianni Versace was shot dead on the steps of his Miami house, the fashion world lost one of its most interesting and important characters. The hugely charismatic Italian designer has been an extraordinary force over the past two decades.
The first time I saw a Versace show, was the first time I understood the power of fashion. The combination of beautiful models strutting the catwalk, dresses that often appeared moulded to the body and a wonderful rock and roll soundtrack was completely seductive. For Versace there was no "warts and all", everything was larger and more perfect than life, everything was totally desirable.
This understanding of how to create a desire for his clothes made him so forceful. When one thinks of Versace it is usual to think of vibrant colour, shimmering fabrics, gold ornamentation and black leather, but you could also buy a knock-out, simple navy dress or impeccable tailored suit.
With his increasing popularity, his gold Medusa head trademark has become a logo associated with wealth and a Mediterranean sense of luxe, often spotted on sunglasses, bags, beach towels, underwear and luggage.
LAST week, at the Paris Couture, I went to a dinner given by Gianni after his show. In Paris, he, his sister Donatella and his brother Santo would host parties at the Ritz, which would combine Italian hospitality with a more American sense of showmanship. There would always be stars, in this case Demi Moore and Leonardo Di Caprio; on previous occasions, Sylvester Stallone, Lisa Marie Presley, Madonna and, almost always, his great friend Elton John.
Normally the intention would be to have a small gathering, but like anything associated with the Versaces it would never stay that way and thirty, forty, fifty people would sit down to eat.
In Milan, where the Versace shows are held in the tented-over courtyard at Via Gesu, there would often be a party afterwards, a more relaxed buffet affair, with celebrities crammed on to huge sofas and ottomans, while models wearing clothes straight from the catwalk stood in line for plates of delicious pasta.
It was all part of Versace's intuitive understanding of the importance of the media. For him it was not enough to produce glamorous and exotic clothes; he knew that a route to big business was to ensure that these clothes were seen on newsworthy figures. A page of advertising in an American magazine could cost $40,000 - but Diana, Princess of Wales in a white shift on a newspaper front page would cost nothing and have a much greater effect.
IN MANY ways the tremendous interest in fashion today, and the brand-awareness accompanying it, is directly attributable to Versace. While his clothes may not always have been the most innovative, and he was naturally shunned by lovers of minimalist chic, his immense contribution to the industry cannot be denied.
Versace believed that fashion should be fun, fearless and, most of all, new. If he could make the whole experience colourful and exciting, people would talk about it, write about it, photograph it. The more exposure that a designer could have, the stronger he would become. He understood that publicity is the oxygen of the fashion business. Today, the symbiotic relationship between fashion and fame is evident. But the Versace family put the most conviction behind it.
On a personal level, I will miss Versace for his courtesy and friendliness. He was one of the designers who took the time to establish a relationship. He was trying to buy a house in London and was looking forward to spending time here - particularly because of his new-found interest in contemporary British art.
Yesterday, I was wearing a scarlet Versace cardigan. Made of clinging viscose and rayon, it had a sensuous quality and intensity of colour that you don't find in any old red cardigan. You couldn't help but have a good time in it, and that's what Versace wanted to achieve.
