Two years after she was first asked, Donatella Versace unveiled her much-anticipated budget collection for H&M on Tuesday night with a New York event that didn’t cut back on anything. Photographer Kevin Tachman was on hand to capture every minute of the evening, which began with Versace showcasing 43 looks (on sale Nov. 19) for the Swedish discount retailer on the runway. Though they aren’t quite as elaborate as she tends to be, the studded, neon, animal- and palm-tree-printed collection still oozes Versace’s iconic ornate flavor. “I said I wanted to do the iconic pieces of Versace, Versace through history until now,” the designer told Jacob Bernstein in Newsweek. “If you look very close you can see it’s not the same, but three meters away you really get confused about which one is the original.” Once the catwalk was clear, hip-hop princess Nicki Minaj and rock star Prince, neither of whom shy away from shine, took the stage for a legendary performance. See photos of the backstage rush, the high-fashion, low-budget runway show, and the Minaj-Prince collaboration.
Models walk the runway during the show.
