25 November 2024

Inauguration at Malpensa of the exhibition "How you were dressed"

A powerful installation to debunk stereotypes and combat the culture of blaming victims of sexual violence

The traveling exhibition "How were you dressed?" was inaugurated today at the international departures area of Milan Malpensa airport, a project promoted in Italy by Libere Sinergie that addresses one of the most painful and controversial issues in the fight against gender-based violence: secondary victimization. Through this initiative, which has already made the rounds of numerous symbolic places, the aim is to raise public awareness of the fact that sexual violence is never linked to the clothes worn, but is always and only a matter of prevarication and abuse of power.

Exhibition: "How were you dressed?". From the left Castelli, Costa, Mazzetti .

The exhibition is part of the dynamic and international environment of Terminal 1, where thousands of passengers every day will have the opportunity to stop and reflect. The inaugural event was attended by Michaela Castelli, president of SEA Aeroporti di Milano, who underlined the importance of bringing awareness-raising messages even in places of passage such as an airport, Silvia Cattafesta, vice president of Libere Sinergie, who told the genesis of the project in Italy, and Lella Costa, actress and director of the Teatro Carcano in Milan, who with her voice gave life to some touching testimonies on display.

"How were you dressed?" It addresses a question often asked of rape victims, both in institutional contexts and in public opinion, a question that implies a silent but devastating judgment: what role did the victim have in having suffered the violence? The exhibition responds with a simple but powerful narrative: ordinary clothes displayed on mannequins, accompanied by the true stories of the women who wore them at the time they suffered the abuse. Among these dresses are jeans, tracksuits, work aprons, pajamas and skirts: all garments that dispel the myth of a correlation between what you wear and the violence you suffer.

The project draws inspiration from the original installation "What Were You Wearing?", created in 2014 in the United States by Jen Brockman and Mary A. Wyandt-Hiebert, and adapted in Italy thanks to Libere Sinergie. The first Italian performance took place on March 8, 2018, and since then the exhibition has become a reference point for awareness campaigns, entering in 2020 also among the educational proposals promoted by Amnesty International Italy as part of the #iolochiedo campaign, which aims to spread a culture based on consent and respect.

The exhibition, with its 17 authentic stories collected by professionals such as Silvia Cattafesta and Nadia Muscialini, a psychologist expert in gender-based violence, is a cry against the prejudices that still accompany rape victims. Each story told is an invitation to reflect, to dismantle deep-rooted stereotypes and to take a stand against any form of blaming the victims.

Bringing this exhibition to Malpensa, a place that represents a bridge to the world, reinforces the universal message that violence against women can never be justified. The clothes worn by the victims do not speak of provocation, but of everyday life. Violence, on the other hand, speaks only of abuse, oppression and lack of respect.

"How were you dressed?" is not just an exhibition: it is a movement, a challenge to change perspective and build a society where women no longer have to justify themselves for what they have worn, but can count on a system that protects and supports them unreservedly.

Exhibition: "How were you dressed?"

Where: Milan Malpensa Airport Terminal 1

By the editorial staff of Avion Tourism Magazine

What to see in Milan

Milano. Foto uso editoriale: Copyright © Sisterscom.com / Shutterstock

Discover Milan

Partnership with Skyscanner

Flights to Milan

Partnership with Booking.com

Hotels in Milan