NEW YORK – In the movies, the devil wears Prada.

In real life, it’s Miuccia Prada, who was honored Tuesday by the nonprofit Council for the United States and Italy. The designer wore a black dress with feathery winglike decor on the back.

She received her prize without speaking a word to the gathering in the grand ballroom of the Plaza.

After an ear-numbing string of speeches, Prada explained: “I am not shy. I just don’t like to be generic. I’m not able to speak in sound bites. So I don’t do it.”

Her husband, Patrizio Bertelli, CEO of the Milan-based company, and IBM Corp. CEO Samuel J. Palmisano, were also honored.

The council was founded in 1983 in Venice by industrialist Gianni Agnelli and banker David Rockefeller to advance U.S.-Italian relations.