Curated by André Leon Talley at the Savannah College of Art and Design, the Oscar de la Renta exhibition “Oscar de la Renta: His Legendary World of Style” showcases 70 original designs including red-carpet gowns worn by Taylor Swift, Beyoncé, Oprah Winfrey, Sarah Jessica Parker and Nicole Kidman. With Talley leading the way, the designer’s wife Annette, his daughter Eliza Bolen and her husband Alex, Erika Bearman and Anna Wintour were among the first to pass through the gallery. “It was important to me that Annette loved it. I think she did,” Talley said.

Held three months after de la Renta’s death, the occasion was no doubt an emotional one for his family. “No one broke down at all. They were just enjoying it all,” Talley said. “There was no fanfare, no fireworks.”

Talley added, “One of the guests said, ‘Oh, I feel as though I’ve been invited into Oscar’s house.’ Basically, I tried to arrange it like rooms where people were having conversations.”

SCAD founder and president Paula Wallace said, “It’s SCAD’s great honor to host this tribute exhibition for a great friend who did so much for SCAD students. It was a joy to see Annette’s reaction as we walked through the exhibition together for the first time.”

Laurie Ann Farrell, SCAD’s executive director of exhibition, said, “This was a very special moment for Savannah to have the opening of the first Oscar de la Renta show.”