As is often the case in such cases, there were people who considered the museum an inappropriate “setting” for a fashion show, while others argued that fashion, as an art form, can be included in such a context. In any case, the much-lauded show was attended by many “famous” showbiz names, from the British actress Lily Collins to the iconic editor-in-chief of the American “Vogue”, Anna Wintour.
The pieces presented belong to the Turkish-British designer Erdem Moraliogluwho for this particular collection was inspired by Maria Callas – hence the choice of Greek antiquities as a background. Specifically, the clothes were based on Calla’s costumes from the performance of “Medea”, in which she starred in 1953. As for the designer, he is already an established creator in his field. Born in 1977 to an English mother and a Turkish father, he grew up in Quebec, Canada and later went to study in Birmingham, England.
In an interview in 2021 for the Greek “Vogue” he stated that he had “a very happy childhood and an upbringing which, although with special characteristics, I would say was completely normal”. After completing his studies, the designer apprenticed under Vivienne Westwood and eventually created his own brand in 2005. Among other things, he has designed clothes for companies such as H&M, as well as ballet costumes for London’s Royal Opera House. Through his own brand, Moralioglu has dressed various personalities, from Keira Knightley and Nicole Kidman to Meghan Markle and Kate Middleton.
Mendoni: The masterpieces of Pheidias were decor for the fashion show – They are degraded and belittled
Culture Minister Lina Mendoni answered questions from journalists regarding yesterday’s fashion show at the British Museum, in front of the Parthenon Sculptures.
According to ERT, Lina Mendoni underlined that the masterpieces of Phidias were a decor for the fashion show and in this way they are belittled and belittled, in the fashion show of the Turkish-British designer, which caused reactions.
Lina Mendoni’s full statement on the fashion show at the British Museum:
“There was never any fashion show at the archaeological site of the Acropolis. When, in 2020, something like this was requested by Dior, the request was not accepted by the Ministry of Culture. After collaborations and negotiations, the show was organized, in 2021, in Kallimarmaro.
The Ministry of Culture allowed only the photography of the models in the archaeological site of the Acropolis, on the model of the corresponding photography of the same house, which had taken place in 1951. It should be noted that the Dior collection was inspired by Greek antiquity, while Greek workshops provided raw materials and collaborated with the French house. The photo shoot took place while the Acropolis was closed, with a limited number of models, without any audience and only with the presence of the security staff and the archaeologists in charge.
Yesterday’s fashion show at the British Museum took place in the limited space of the Duveen Gallery, in the presence of dozens of guests. The Sculptures were used as simple decorative elements, without any dialectical relationship between the collection and Greek antiquity, without any relationship with the values that the Phidian works transmit and symbolize. The Sculptures were used as a backdrop, which belittles their universal value, which the British Museum displays by adopting for itself the characterization of the universal museum. Let us remember that there are cases where the Sculptures in the Duveen Gallery have been damaged, due to overcrowding and carelessness of visitors.
As I have argued many times, we are not adverse to organizing fashion shows in archaeological sites, monuments and museums. Fashion is included in the contemporary cultural and creative industries and can be consistent with these spaces. However, where and how these events take place is of greater importance. In the British Museum, the masterpieces of Pheidias formed the decor for the fashion show. In this way they are belittled and belittled”.
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