Members of the public began paying their respects to fashion legend Giorgio Armani as his coffin was put on display in Milan.
Hundreds of people queued up before the opening of the viewing at 9am (8am Irish time), which will last two days ahead of a private funeral on Monday for the Italian designer, who died on Thursday aged 91.
The best-known contemporary designer, Armani opened his fashion house in Milan in 1975, quickly rising to the top of the industry and going on to dress the stars.
"Il Signor Armani, as he was always respectfully and admiringly called by employees and collaborators, passed away peacefully, surrounded by his loved ones," the company said.
"Indefatigable to the end, he worked until his final days, dedicating himself to the company, the collections, and the many ongoing and future projects," it added.
Armani had cancelled his menswear show in Milan this year due to health reasons. He also missed the Paris Armani Prive show on doctors' orders.
The Italian icon was credited with inventing red-carpet fashion, but also moved into a younger and less expensive range through Emporio Armani, and opened luxury hotels.
His death came just weeks ahead of celebrations marking 50 years of his eponymous label.
Italy's Culture Minister Alessandro Giuli led the tributes on Thursday, paying homage to "a leading figure in Italian culture, who was able to transform elegance into a universal language".
"His understated and innovative style redefined the relationship between fashion, cinema, and society, leaving an indelible mark on contemporary culture," he said.
"He was not only a master of fashion, but also a recognised ambassador of Italian identity around the world."
Armani was born in 1934 in Piacenza, a town in the industrial heartland of northern Italy, close to Milan, one of three children of Ugo Armani and Maria Raimondi.
His father worked at the headquarters of the local Fascist party before becoming an accountant for a transport company. His mother was a homemaker.
Despite their limited means, his parents possessed an inner elegance, Armani told "Made in Milan", and Maria's sense of style shone through in the clothes she made for her three children. "We were the envy of all our classmates," he said. "We looked rich even though we were poor."
Armani studied to become a doctor, but dropped out after two years at university and then did his military service.
He took his first steps in fashion - which he never formally studied - when he was offered a job at renowned department store La Rinascente to help dress the windows.
His first big break came with an invitation to work for Italian designer Nino Cerruti in the mid 1960s. There he began to experiment with deconstructing the jacket.
As a designer he quickly tapped into two important trends in Western society in the late 20th century - a more prominent role for women and a more fluid approach to masculinity.
Armani debuted his first menswear collection in 1975 and was soon popular in Europe.
Five years later, he won the hearts of the US glittering class when he dressed Richard Gere for the1980 film "American Gigolo", beginning a long association with Hollywood.
That same year, luxury department store Bergdorf Goodman became the first US retailer to launch an in-store Armani women's boutique, securing the designer's transatlantic reach.
