July 11 (Bloomberg) -- As bombs fell during the first Gulf War, Valentino designed a simple, white column dress with the word ``Peace'' embroidered on it in 14 languages.

That ``Peace'' dress is now the centerpiece of Valentino's 45th anniversary fashion exhibition, surrounded by 300 more of his most glamorous evening gowns at Rome's Ara Pacis monument commissioned by Emperor Augustus.

``This monument is so amazing that we decided if you can't beat it, join it,'' Giancarlo Giammetti, Valentino's business partner, said to reporters before the opening. ``We decided to create a pagan procession of women honoring the Ara Pacis.''

``I have always followed my own sense of fashion, rather than prevailing trends,'' Valentino, 75, said to reporters.

His work has always been rich with decoration and embellishment: Most of the dresses come in bright colors, adorned with beaded embroidery, tulle and chiffon flowers.

``The two periods I hated most in fashion were ``grunge'' and ``minimalism,'' Valentino said, referring to the alternative rock- band looks that emerged from Seattle in the mid-1980s and the period of austere looks championed by designers such as Jil Sander and Miuccia Prada in the 1990s. ``Grunge was really outrageous and minimalism was an offense to women. Why look bad when you can look beautiful?''

Valentino has designed clothes for women from Sophia Loren and Jacqueline Kennedy to Penelope Cruz and Cameron Diaz. The show was curated by Patrick Kinmonth and Antonio Manfreda, who designed the AngloMania show at the Metropolitan Museum of Art last year.

Offerings

The altar was dedicated on July 4 by Augustus after years of war campaigns, said Kinmonth during an interview before the opening. ``It's fitting that we are inaugurating the Valentino exhibit at the beginning of July, 2020 years later.''

The arch features sculpted images of Augustus and his family making offerings to the gods. The dresses represent Valentino's own offerings to the women he spent his life designing for.

The exhibition starts with one of Valentino's signature red evening gowns in a transparent red cube outside the entrance to the museum, which was renovated and extended with a glass-and- travertine covering by architect Richard Meier in 2006.

In designing the show, Kinmonth and Manfreda ensured viewers are constantly seeing the clothes from different perspectives, avoiding the risk that they could seem lifeless on the displays.

A ramp leads past 60 gold mannequins dressed in embroidered gowns from Valentino's haute couture and ready-to-wear collections, hanging high on the walls like fashionable angels.

Fireworks and Stars

The opening on July 7 kicked off three days of celebrations, including fireworks at the Temple of Venus, a couture show at Santo Spirito in Sassia and a gala dinner at the Villa Borghese.

Sienna Miller, Sarah Jessica Parker, Joan Collins and Mick Jagger were among 1,000 guests at the dinner. Annie Lennox, dressed in a black floor-length gown, sang and played a piano. She said it was the first time she had worn anything by Valentino.

``The incredible thing about Valentino is that every one of these dresses would be wearable today,'' said Andre Leon Talley, editor-at-large for Vogue magazine, in an interview at the show.

To contact the reporter on this story: Sara Gay Forden in Milan at sforden@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: July 11, 2007 03:07 EDT