“The Power of the Lady in Pink” (a site-specific installation*)

June 2 – August 2, 2023

“The ‘La belle Rose, the mystical power of the little flower’ is a product of the collaboration between the National Museum of History, the Kazanluk’s Museum of the Rose and the ‘Iskra’ Museum of History. The exhibition is dedicated to the rose oil industry in Bulgaria, while tracing the path of the Bulgarian rose oil from its first drops to the conquest of the world markets in the 19^th c.”

An important accent within the already expanded collection of the Museum of the Rose is the elegant lady’s presence of the collection of urban attire (original dresses and artist’s replicas) from the end of the 19^th and the beginning of the 20^th century. The display is supplemented by video documentation (of a fashion show – spectacle), which is a project of the Department of Fashion Design at the National Art Academy in Sofia featuring original dresses from the same period done in modern styling. This special lady’s presence within the museum context is a kind of a unique evidence for the delicate but unquestionably relevant role of the ladies as the true inspiration and support of the worldwide success of the rose oil industry in the city of Kazanluk.

A special part within the installation is the unique selection of a group of replicas of urban dresses from the beginning of the 20^th century. They were worked out elaborately and true-to-their-times by the fashion designer Alexandra Petrova from the Class of 2018 of Ass. Prof. Mariela Gemisheva PhD. This collection is owned by the Museum of History in Breznik. It is on loan for the time between May and August 2023, with the kind support of Mrs. Emilia Velinova, director of the museum.

The final element from the installation is the unique sculptural composition of fashion objects in pink created by Mariela Gemisheva and inspired by the colors and the aroma of the Valley of the Roses. It is dedicated to the Rose Queens of today and their leading role for the impressive presence of Kazanluk, the city that has kept alive the unique tradition of the highest level of the rose industry, while influencing the highly competitive segment of the world markets.

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*Site-specific is a kind of conceptual/artistic intervention in a specific environment (in this case – a museum), without violating the existing display.