MILAN — Thousands of people over the weekend paid their final respects to a towering figure of the fashion world who permeated many facets of life here and earned the moniker “King Giorgio.”
Beginning at dawn on Saturday, people began lining up outside of the company’s headquarters to pass by and touch the closed coffin of Giorgio Armani who died on Thursday at 91. A steady stream of visitors continued into the evening on Sunday, when the public viewing came to an end, with wait times sometimes exceeding 90 minutes.
Armani’s funeral will be held on Monday in Rivalta, a town about 80 kilometres south of Milan near where he was born. The private funeral will be open only to family members and Armani’s closest friends and collaborators.
In Milan over the weekend, Armani’s coffin lay in a vast, dark theatre lit by hundreds of candles. A massive screen displayed a picture of him in one of his trademark black suits accompanied by what has now become one of his most recognisable quotes: “The mark I hope to leave is one of commitment, respect and genuine care for people and for reality. That’s where everything truly begins.”
The visitors included well-known designers, business titans, sports stars, actors, models, politicians and thousands of regular people who admired Armani from afar. Some of the more than 15,000 visitors came decked out in classic Armani garb while others wore shorts and T-shirts befitting Milan’s balmy end-of-summer weather.
Donatella Versace arrived carrying a bouquet of white flowers, dressed in a black dress and jacket. She told journalists Armani “seemed immortal.” Her brother, Santo, arrived later and left in tears. He declined to speak to journalists amassed on the street in front of the Armani theatre that housed the coffin.
John Elkann, the Agnelli scion and chairman of Ferrari and carmaker Stellantis, which owns the Jeep, Chrysler and Fiat brands, headlined the business leaders who came to pay their respects. Elkann, who controls his family’s finances through the Exor holding company, approached Armani in 2021 to see if they could pool their companies to create an Italian luxury conglomerate. Armani rebuffed the advances from Elkann who at the time was half the designer’s age.
The Armani fans who came included Anna Ricciardi, who works in casting in the fashion industry and showed up unaccompanied.
“It feels like somebody very close to me has died even though I never met him,” she said. “I love his style, his elegance, but he was so much more than a fashion designer.”
Alicia Monera, a 20-year-old university student from Barcelona, stood in line on Saturday afternoon with four friends. “We just happened to be in Milan this weekend on vacation and couldn’t miss this chance to pay our respects. We can’t afford Armani clothing for our everyday life, but we have some things for special occasions.”
Armani’s death comes with relatively little clarity on who will run the company, who will lead the creative department and how ownership will be divided between his heirs.
What isn’t in doubt is that Armani’s legacy goes well beyond the fashion industry. His decision to build his headquarters in a part of Milan previously populated with factories helped rejuvenate a neighbourhood where he has gradually expanded and now owns multiple buildings. The area is also home to the Armani Silos, a large, four-floor exhibition space that through the end of the year has a show dedicated to the Armani Privé collection that includes dozens of iconic Armani dresses.
“I liked everything about him and though I could never afford any of his clothing, it’s like a wore whatever he made because I would stop at the shop windows and look at his creations,” said Azra Mulabdic, whose husband worked for more than two decades at a former factory down the block from the Armani theatre. “Armani was a great man who remained humble, and he won’t be forgotten.”