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London Fashion Week Show at British Museum Irks Greece

Designer Erdem Moralioglu chose the impressive setting of the Athens Parthenon sculptures showroom at the British Museum. HENRY NICHOLLS / AFP
Designer Erdem Moralioglu chose the impressive setting of the Athens Parthenon sculptures showroom at the British Museum. HENRY NICHOLLS / AFP
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London Fashion Week Show at British Museum Irks Greece

Designer Erdem Moralioglu chose the impressive setting of the Athens Parthenon sculptures showroom at the British Museum. HENRY NICHOLLS / AFP
Designer Erdem Moralioglu chose the impressive setting of the Athens Parthenon sculptures showroom at the British Museum. HENRY NICHOLLS / AFP

The Greek Minister of Culture, Lina Mendoni, expressed her anger late on Saturday after a London Fashion week show took place in front of the Parthenon Marbles at the British Museum.
Designer Erdem Moralioglu chose the impressive setting of the Athens Parthenon sculptures showroom at the British Museum to present the autumn winter 2024 collection of his eponymous brand Erdem, inspired by Greek singer Maria Callas and her interpretation of the opera Medea in 1953, AFP said.
"By organizing a fashion show in the halls where the Parthenon Sculptures are exhibited, the British Museum, once again, proves its zero respect for the masterpieces of Pheidias," Mendoni said in a statement.
"The directors of the British Museum trivialize and insult not only the monument but also the universal values that it transmits. The conditions of display and storage of the sculptures, at the Duveen Gallery, are constantly deteriorating. It is time for the stolen and abused sculptural masterpieces to shine in the Attic light," she added.
The sculptures were taken from the Parthenon temple at the Acropolis in Greece in the early 19th century by British diplomat Thomas Bruce, the earl of Elgin.
Athens maintains the marbles, which are a major draw for visitors at London's British Museum, were stolen, while the UK claims they were obtained legally.
The 1963 British Museum Act prohibits the removal of objects from the institution's collection.
But officials at the museum, which is under pressure to repatriate other foreign antiquities, have not ruled out a possible loan deal.
Late November, a diplomatic spat raised eyebrows when Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis expressed his "displeasure" over UK counterpart Rishi Sunak's last minute cancellation of a bilateral meeting set to discuss their long-running dispute over the Parthenon Marbles.
At issue for London was the Greek leader's comments in a BBC interview a day before the meeting about ownership of the 2,500-year-old marbles.
Sunak was allegedly angry about Mitsotakis's comments that having some of the marbles in London and others in Athens was like cutting the Mona Lisa in half.

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Fashion

It’s Met Gala Time! Get Yourself Suitable with This Guide on What to Expect

Met Gala celebrity chair Lewis Hamilton speaks at the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute during a press conference October 9, 2024. (AFP)
Met Gala celebrity chair Lewis Hamilton speaks at the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute during a press conference October 9, 2024. (AFP)
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It’s Met Gala Time! Get Yourself Suitable with This Guide on What to Expect

Met Gala celebrity chair Lewis Hamilton speaks at the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute during a press conference October 9, 2024. (AFP)
Met Gala celebrity chair Lewis Hamilton speaks at the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute during a press conference October 9, 2024. (AFP)

As springtime sunshine finally hits New York City, the Met Gala beckons — one of the most anticipated and visible parties in the world.

This year, the theme — “Tailored For You" — is focused on classic tailoring. As always, the dress code is inspired by the spring exhibit at the Costume Institute of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style” is the first Met show to focus exclusively on Black designers, and the first in more than 20 years to have a menswear theme. The show looks at the evolution of Black style over the centuries through the lens of dandyism.

Here are some key things to know as fashion's biggest night approaches:

When is the Met Gala? The gala happens the first Monday in May — this year, May 5.

What exactly is the Met Gala? Not everyone knows that the gala is actually a fundraiser for the Costume Institute, the only self-funding department at the Met. Last year the evening brought in a whopping sum of more than $26 million to the museum's coffers.

Was it always this big? Definitely not. It started in 1948 as a Manhattan society midnight supper – held at various places like the Waldorf Astoria and the Rainbow Room. It took many years before it turned into a global event and one of the starriest nights of the year.

Who's hosting the 2025 Met Gala? Each year brings a new group of celebrity co-chairs. This year they are Pharrell Williams, Lewis Hamilton, Colman Domingo, and A$AP Rocky — along with Anna Wintour, the influential Vogue editor who always oversees the proceedings. NBA superstar LeBron James is honorary chair.

Who else is attending the Met Gala so far? Word on attendees trickles out slowly in the weeks leading up to the event. But this year there’s also a huge additional host committee with stars from various fields. (They don’t have specific host duties, other than showing up and, it goes without saying, looking fabulous.)

It includes athletes Simone Biles and husband Jonathan Owens, Angel Reese and Sha’Carri Richardson; filmmakers Spike Lee, Tonya Lewis Lee and Regina King; and actors Ayo Edebiri, Audra McDonald and Jeremy Pope, and musicians Doechii, Usher, Tyla, Janelle Monáe and André 3000.

Also in the group are author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie; artists Jordan Casteel, Rashid Johnson and Kara Walker; playwrights Jeremy O. Harris and Branden Jacobs-Jenkins; and fashion figures Grace Wales Bonner, Edward Enninful, Dapper Dan and Olivier Rousteing.

Can anyone buy a ticket to the Met Gala? In a word: No. You cannot just buy a ticket. The right question is: If I were famous or powerful and got invited, how much would it cost?

If I were famous or powerful and got invited, how much would it cost? Individual tickets start at $75,000. Generally, though, companies buy tables. A fashion label, for example, would then host its desired celebrities. A table of 10 starts at $350,000 this year, as it did last year. There will be approximately 400 guests.

How strict is the dress code? The code is meant to be a guide, not a hard rule, and loose interpretation is encouraged.

How do guests spend the evening? Guests enter the museum and walk past an enormous flower arrangement in the museum’s grand lobby – always a talking point. Often there is an orchestra playing nearby. At the top of the grand staircase, Wintour and her co-hosts form a receiving line. Guests then head to view the exhibit, which is followed by dinner. The most hotly anticipated guests sometimes arrive around dessert time for maximum impact (we're looking at you, Rihanna).