A request by luxury goods icon Gucci to hold and film an international fashion show atop the Acropolis — and with the Parthenon as a backdrop no less — was unanimously rejected on Tuesday evening by a powerful supervisory board , which stated that the “event was not compatible with the particular cultural characteristics of the Acropolis monuments.”
Members of the Central Archaeological Council (KAS) also justified the ruling by reminding that the archaeological site is a world cultural heritage and a UNESCO-protected monument.
The last time a sanctioned fashion show was held on the Acropolis was way back in 1951, with a Christian Dior collection then presented by models.
One of Greece’s pioneering early 20th century photographers, Nelly’s, scandalized conservative Athenian society in the late 1920s by photographing a well-known dancer of the era, Mona Paeva, nude on the Acropolis.
Meanwhile, in reaction to a handful of press reports claiming that the fashion and luxury brand house offered as much as 56 million euros for “cultural cooperation” with the Greek state, Gucci issued a prickly worded statement a day later from Milan.
“…we confirm that a meeting took place with the Greek authorities to explore the possibility of a long-term cultural collaboration. This type of initiative is not new for our brand; in recent years Gucci has established such cultural collaborations with Palazzo Strozzi in Florence, the Mingshen Museum in Shanghai, Chatsworth House in England and LACMA in Los Angeles. The published speculation regarding the supposed economic proposal, direct or indirect, is absolutely incorrect and without any foundation. The information reported by Repubblica.it and some other Greek websites was not verified in any way with us.”
