Donatella Versace, Superstar
Designer's Status Confirmed at Fashion Group International's Gala
Was the Fashion Group International's 25th annual gala "dripping with international savoir faire," to quote host Simon Doonan? Or was it, in the words of presenter Philippe Starck, "the biggest concentration of useless people in the world"? Either way, the glam-packed dinner and awards ceremony, held at the downtown Cipriani, injected Wall Street with some much-needed pizzazz. Donatella Versace, flanked by J. Lo and Prince—need we say more?
Up on stage, Bruce Weber presented the Beauty prize to a bowled-over Bobbi Brown; Stefano Tonchi devoted a warm (and lengthy) encomium to Carla Sozzani; and Starck, after announcing the trophies were "ugly," enthusiastically handed one to Christian Louboutin.
Versace, meanwhile, accepted the Superstar Award with minimal to-do. It was Karl Lagerfeld who brought things up a notch. During pre-dinner cocktails, the designer had griped about having to remove his shades on the podium to read his speech: "I hate the idea!" But when his turn came, he lowered his eyewear ever so slightly and tore through a précis on sartorial preservation that touched on everyone from Diana Vreeland to Dalí. "The red carpet, another invention of our time, distorts fashion by giving it a fake and too glamorous face," he declared. It wasn't clear whether his statement made an impression on the audience. But it definitely qualified as savoir faire.
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