At Valentino Garavani’s Funeral, Global Fashion Notables Gather in Rome

ROME — Between state and religious events, Rome is used to being locked down and traffic gridlocks are par for the course, but Valentino Garavani’s funeral in the Italian capital on Friday did not go unnoticed — as was to be expected, given his legacy and national and global reputation.

Hundreds of onlookers gathered on the central Piazza della Repubblica, protected by several Italian police forces, to pay their respects to the couturier after a two-day wake concluded the evening before.

The 16th-century Basilica of Saint Mary of the Angels and Martyrs, a project by Michelangelo Buonarroti and part of the Diocletian Baths complex, was the stunning backdrop for the ceremony. It is a titular church for state funerals and official ceremonies of the Italian Republic.

The black-and-white photo of a smiling Garavani, who died on Jan. 19 at age 93, and previously displayed at the wake, stood at the altar surrounded by white flowers. The casket arrived as notes of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s “Lacrimosa” floated through the church, already filled to capacity. Several attendees wore red accessories – a scarf or a hat in the color closely associated with Garavani.

Franz Schubert’s “Ave Maria” and Mozart’s “Ave Verum Corpus” were performed by a string quintet and a vocalist, while the 1955 track “Il Nostro Concerto” by Umberto Bindi and Giacomo Puccini’s “Babbino Caro” wafted through the venue at the end of the funeral.

“First of all, I want to thank all our friends from all over the world who flew here to be with us, to be with Valentino. And also have to go through this very long Mass in Italian, but this is our religion, and Valentino would love it,” said Garavani’s longtime partner Giancarlo Giammetti after the sermon, addressing the congregation.

Moving to Italian, he continued by saying that Garavani taught him about beauty. “Through him I discovered what beauty meant, and it was a beauty that accompanied us through our entire life. We met when we were kids, together we dreamed the same things and fulfilled some of those dreams and I could say also realized many of them. Our path will continue for ever Valentino, you will always be with me and I will do all that I can to keep your memory alive through myself and our foundation, which will remember who you are, who you were and always be with us.”

Bruce Hoeksema, Garavani’s longtime companion, fought hard to keep his tears in check and admitted that at first he did not plan to speak. “I was not convinced I’d be able to and I’m still not quite sure I can get through this. So, please bear with me.

“Valentino, you were the person I spoke to, not the person I spoke about,” Hoeksema continued. “You were beside me when words were not needed. Life was not always perfect, but it was real. One day at a time, for more than 40 years all strung together became extraordinary because we were living them together. This is what I’ll miss about you most. I know how many people loved you and I’m grateful for that. But what we shared was ours alone and I will hold that carefully for the rest of my life. I don’t say goodbye today. I say thank you for choosing me, for walking with me and leaving me changed forever. Thank you.”

Anne Hathaway, accompanied by her husband Adam Shulman, was also clearly moved. “I have been busy working and now it’s all coming through,” she sweetly said outside the church. Hathaway is a longtime friend of Garavani’s and Giammetti’s, and wore a custom design by the couturier for her 2012 nuptials.

Next to her husband Antoine Arnault, head of image and environment at LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, Natalia Vodianova, also a close member of Garavani’s inner circle, looked downcast, exiting the church near Elizabeth Hurley and her son Damien.

“He was a dear friend, also to Gianni,” said Donatella Versace, who attended the funeral with her daughter Allegra.

Next to her were designers and executives that worked for years with Garavani, from Maria Grazia Chiuri and Pierpaolo Piccioli, to Alessandro Michele, who as current creative director of the brand said he felt surrounded by his presence in the atelier in the storied headquarters in Rome’s Piazza Mignanelli.

Matteo Marzotto and Stefano Sassi, respectively former Valentino chairman and chief executive officer, both said they would not have missed the funeral, as the years with the designer were “such a big part of our life.”

The brand’s current shareholders, Kering chairman François-Henri Pinault and Mayhoola CEO Rachid Mohamed Rachid, attended with Riccardo Bellini, Valentino’s CEO.

Carlo Capasa, head of Italy’s Camera della Moda, warmly greeted Tom Ford outside the church, which is “particularly beautiful and important in Rome,” said Brunello Cucinelli, who quietly admired its ornate vaults and frescoes.

Among others attending the funeral were Valentino’s muse Georgina Brandolini d’Adda and her daughters Bianca and Coco; Marisa Berenson, who in 1968 famously modeled the couturier’s all-white collection and remained a close friend over the years; Anna Fendi and her granddaughter Delfina Delettrez Fendi; Ginevra Elkann; Olivia Palermo and Johannes Huebl; Ermanno Daelli, and Toni Scervino.