Givenchy recently presented its Fall/Winter 2010 fashion collection in France; some of the items were religious-themed.
Givenchy decided to wax religious: the 25 male models wore clothes and accessories that were a showcase of Christian symbols. All but one of the items were inoffensive.
Catholicism was obviously on the mind of designer Riccardo Tisci when he crafted his “JESUS IS LORD” T-shirts, monastic hoods, clerical shirts, patent leather sandals and the like. While they were a little cheeky, they were still done in good taste. What crossed the line, however, were his gold-colored crown of thorns necklaces. It was disturbing enough to see pictures of men wearing this item over a shirt, but to feature a bare-chested model donning it was nothing but contemptible.
There is a difference between being edgy and being obnoxious: the Crown of Thorns that Jesus wore is a very serious statement in Christianity, and it is not fair game to trivialize its meaning.
We asked Givenchy to pull the necklace immediately. As we went to press, we had not yet received a response.
