Giorgio Armani’s final show: a catwalk memorial choreographed by himself

Designer’s 50th anniversary celebration was sadder but also grander and more spectacular than he intended

In a fitting twist of fate the legendarily strong-willed Giorgio Armani, who towered over Milanese fashion for half a century and controlled every stitch of his empire right up until his death, got to choreograph his catwalk memorial himself.

Armani spent his final months planning a celebration of 50 years of his brand with a show in the romantic cloistered courtyard of the Pinacoteca di Brera gallery in central Milan, where an exhibition dedicated to Armani has just opened. “Save the Date” notices for the night of 28 September had gone out before his death earlier this month.