“In rhetoric, chiasmus is the figure of speech in which two or more clauses are related to each other through a reversal of structures in order to make a larger point; that is, the clauses display inverted parallelism.”
The fairy tale Little Red Riding hood shows a chiasmus in the role of the perpetrator and the victim. This chiasmus is used with the stereotypes of a cleric and a wall-street broker in the collection.
The collection unites the stereotypical clothes of these professions. The double-breasted suit of the eighties with the broad shoulder pieces and needle-stripes merges with the high-necked cassock. The shirt with the rolled-up sleeves merges with the capa, the tie-pin with the holy cross and the belt with the cincture.
The brogues shine in a papal red. Fine needle stripes have been printed on the grey cashmere suit that also demonstrates a chiasmus: a change from dark to bright stripes. A narrow strip has been flocked onto the delicate cotton shirt, which produces a tangible chiasmus.
Who do I see? The victim, the perpetrator, the stock broker or the cleric?
photography: Fabian Frost
model: Kai / IZAIO, Berlin