His bold collections shook the world of European fashion at the turn of the 2000s. The clothes and accessories he designed were worn by music and film stars such as Christina Aguilera, Ashanti, Bjork, Janet Jackson, Pink, and Adrien Brody. He was compared to John Galliano and Alexander McQueen. His name appeared in the pages of magazines such as “The New York Times,” “Daily Telegraph,” “The Independent,” “The Sunday Times,” and “Vogue.”

The exhibition will showcase 14 collections by Arkadius, a total of over 200 objects belonging to the museum’s collection. We will see, among others, his diploma collection “Semen of the Gods” full of mythological references, the collection “Lucina, O!” which is a metaphor for the birth of the designer, the “Queen of Sheba” collection, whose heroines are exceptional real and divine women, and the Arcadian “Paulina” inspired by the Polish countryside and the figure of Arkadius’ grandmother. But there are also objects from his most daring collections, such as “Prostitution,” which is an affirmation of pleasure and sex work, “The House of Pleasure,” which touches on themes of love, ecstasy, and dark passion, or “Virgin Mary Wears The Trousers” referring to the image of Mary with the Child. These works are examples of manifestations of freedom: sexual, artistic, intellectual, and spiritual.

Arkadius also used difficult themes to express his opposition to the appropriation of religious and communal symbols and using them to exert control and justify violence. Such is the collection “United States of Mind,” which is the designer’s direct response to the US invasion of Iraq in 2003.

The exhibition will guide the viewer through the most important themes that the designer addressed during his artistic activity. The fashion he created is based on emotions – it moves, shocks, provokes thought, but certainly does not leave one indifferent.

The designer combined and contrasted the sacred with the profane. His muses were both the Virgin Mary and the sex worker. He reached the roots of faith and religion, that is, love, and used it to promote pacifist ideas and anti-discrimination postulates. He spoke openly about sex, eroticism, pleasure, and other great passions, says Marcin Różyc, the exhibition curator.

In the presented collections, we will find Arkadius’ fascination with mythology, literature, and art, echoes of folklore, references to nature, vitality, the theme of life and death, or threads concerning queer culture. He was a precursor who shocked but also fascinated. Fashion in his execution is an art that deserves to be showcased as a valuable heritage of Polish and European national culture.

All the collections presented at the exhibition currently belong to the collections of the Central Museum of Textiles in Łódź. In total, we possess over a thousand objects. For many years, they were stored with a friend of Arkadius in Scotland, where they were deteriorating. With us, they have undergone thorough conservation and enriched the collection of contemporary fashion, which we have been consistently building for many years, says Aneta Dalbiak, director of CMWŁ.

The collections and objects exhibited are accompanied by works of contemporary artists: Radek Anais Laró, Sebulc, Łukasz Stokłosa, and Ewa Wacherlohn. Their works are interpretations of the themes present in Arkadius’ work. The exhibition will also feature artistic textiles from the museum’s collection, including works by Joanna Hasior from the 1960s and 70s.

The exhibition will be open until July 27, 2025.

Find out more: HERE