All hail Donatella Versace, icon of fashion. Which now happens to be an official title, as of Monday – when Ms Versace will get the silverware (Swarovski-ware?) to prove it, as she takes home this year’s Fashion Icon Award at The Fashion Awards 2017. Ms Versace, who happens to be just about as iconique as they come, is being handed the award for being utterly, downright fabulous. We presume. And her longstanding contributions to the world of fashion – obv. Hell, Dona IS fashion. But the award also comes at a poignant time – this year marks twenty since the death of her brother, Gianni Versace, the man who started the label and with it, a worldwide phenomenon.
“I am truly honoured to be collecting the Fashion Icon Award at The Fashion Awards 2017,” Donatella said this afternoon. “For 40 years my brother and I have done what we love and that is a legacy I am honoured to continue and uphold. We have celebrated empowerment, joy and of course glamour. We have championed a community of people who share our values and together with them have created truly iconic images in the world of fashion.
“I am truly humbled by how Versace has been embraced across the decades, across the world and across the generations. Thank you to the industry for your support of us, thank you to my team for their loyalty and incredibly hard work, thank you to my family and friends who have supported me more than they can know and thank you to the genius that was my brother Gianni. His incredible spirit is in everything we do and everything we stand for.”
