The god of fashion

New York’s Metropolitan Museum heads into new territory this week with an exhibition examining the thorny issue of religion on the runway. Donatella Versace, Christopher Kane and more tackle the last taboo with Emily Cronin

In anticipation of a new exhibition at New York’s Metropolitan Museum, Donatella Versace, Jean Paul Gaultier and more discuss Catholicism’s place on the catwalk. By Emily Cronin

This dress means so much to me emotionally that it’s hard to express. It was part of the autumn/ winter 1997 Atelier Versace collection that Gianni presented at The Ritz in Paris – his last collection, shown a week before he died. I love it as I love everything my brother created, but it brings back painful memories.

That collection was very powerful: it included medieval references, religious symbols

– and some of his most beautiful creations. The models were presented in shiny, armour-like dresses that made them look like modern warriors. It was very empowering and it shows also how relevant some of the things he did still are today.

In Italy the theme of religion was a taboo for a long time. Religion was part of everyone’s life, but it was considered untouchable. When Gianni decided to use religious symbols as pure ornaments it was a big scandal. It was the first time that crosses and Madonnas appeared on a runway. Fashion was considered something frivolous back then, and there were people who criticised my brother for having gone too far.

What Gianni was doing was breaking yet another taboo that opened up the road to many designers of today. After that first collection, little by little, people started getting used to it and understood that those symbols were not only treated with respect, but could also be looked at from a different perspective.

Today we live in a different society and no one is really surprised to see religious elements in the collections. I did a few collections in which I used crosses, even in the Tribute collection [for spring 2018, to mark 20 years since Gianni’s death] they were present. But you know, once a taboo is no longer a taboo, everything is easier.