Uses and abuses of history: A case of a Comme des Garçons fashion show

The 1995 Comme des Garçons fashion show, Sleep, provoked widespread controversy in media commentary at the time. The author analyses the origins and consequences of the censorship that resulted in the collection not only physically disappearing, but also in almost all of its traces having been eliminated. This study attempts to show how visual materials were reinterpreted through different media using a few photographs from the show and documentary materials from Auschwitz concentration camp. Discussing the Comme des Garçons case, the author refers to Michel Foucault’s notion of discourse to demonstrate how interpretations proliferated and changed during the period following the show. Most importantly, it shows how memory operates depending on the context: not only how images may be evoked by clothing, but also practically constructed by it. This article recalls that blue-and-white striped pyjamas are an iconic image: often used in popular culture – such as film – they became a widely recognized image of prisoners in Auschwitz concentration camp. Finally, to situate the Comme des Garçons fashion show in a broader context, the article refers to the ‘Nazi-chic’ phenomena, meaning a style referring to images of Nazi Germany.