Valentino Garavani and the Enduring Power of Timeless Gowns

Valentino Garavani died on Monday, and with his passing, fashion lost another one of its last true masters. Not just a couturier, but a man who understood how clothes could shape memory, emotion, and history. For me, his work was about creating gowns that lived far beyond the moment they were worn.

For me, Valentino red has always held a special place. Not as a trend or a branding exercise, as we often see today, but as a feeling. There is something unmistakable about the way he handled that colour. It was rich, romantic, and unapologetically elegant, and as a result, it is woven into my own love of fashion.

And that legacy continues to resonate. In October, Anne Hathaway wore a Valentino Haute Couture red gown to the 2025 WWD Honors, a reminder of how his vision still feels current in a time when some designers create for virality. Over the years, the designer had many muses, with Anne Hathaway becoming his last before he retired. Their genuine friendship played out on the red carpet countless times, most memorably at the 2011 Academy Awards, where she wore Valentino red, of course.

Kaia Gerber stepped out in an archival Valentino Garavani gown at the 2025 Vanity Fair Oscar Party, proving once again that his designs do not age.

Looking back at his red carpet history as a timeline tells the story of his influence.

In 2005, Cate Blanchett wore Valentino to the Academy Awards, delivering a moment of modern elegance.

In 2004, Jennifer Aniston wore a red Valentino dress to the Along Came Polly premiere that remains unforgettable.

The early 2000s were especially rich with Valentino moments. In 2003, Jennifer Lopez attended the Academy Awards in a Valentino gown, inspired by Jackie Kennedy, that became part of pop culture history. He also designed her 2001 wedding gown for her marriage to Cris Judd.

Also in 2003, Kate Hudson embraced a softer, boho inspired Valentino gown to the Golden Globe Awards. Two very different expressions, both unmistakably Valentino.

In 2001, Julia Roberts wore a black and white Valentino gown to the Academy Awards, a look that will forever sit among the most iconic red carpet moments of all time. Worn as she accepted her Oscar, the gown captured everything Valentino did best. Clean lines, confidence, and a quiet sense of occasion that needed no embellishment. It remains a defining image of both her career and his legacy.

In 2000, Halle Berry wore Valentino to the Emmy Awards, where she won Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or Movie for Introducing Dorothy Dandridge. It was a career defining moment, prior to her 2002 Oscar win.

In 1991, Sophia Loren wore a black embellished Valentino gown to the Academy Awards, a masterclass in old Hollywood authority.

And then there is one of the moments that anchors it all. In 1979, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis attended the Costume Institute Gala wearing a black strapless gown and ruffled wrap by Valentino for Fashions of the Habsburg Era. It marked her first Met appearance and cemented Valentino’s place not just in fashion, but in cultural history.

Valentino Garavani’s gowns will endure because they were never designed for a single night. They were designed to live on. And they always will.

Grazie, Mr Garavani.

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