Alexander Vasiliev lectures in Europe

Sex and Fashion: From the Diaghilev Era to the Madonna Era.
What subtle and obvious tricks do we all use in our clothing to attract the opposite sex?
How did changes in the perception of sex influence the development of 20th-century fashion?
What were the standards of male and female beauty in the last century?

In his talks, Alexander Vasilyev addresses such delicate yet at the same time raw topics as sex, eroticism, and gender relations. He explores how religion, philosophy, cultural and sexual revolutions, and the evolution of gender relations influence the formation and development of fashion.

What is fashion in this context: a ploy, a ruse, or seduction?
How have feminism and machismo throughout history influenced the development of fashion?

Alexander Vasilyev offers a new perspective on fashion—the perspective of an attentive, experienced historian viewed through the lens of 20th-century social mores.

Beauty in Exile.
Fashion historian and television host Alexander Vasilyev opens a new chapter in the history of the Russian diaspora. In his lecture “Beauty in Exile,” the audience will be introduced to the “Russian” Harbin, Berlin, and Constantinople of the 1920s and 1930s. And, of course, Paris!

The history of Russian fashion houses founded by members of Russia’s most distinguished families—Irina and Felix Yusupov, Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna Romanova, Princesses Trubetskaya and Obolenskaya, and others. The work of outstanding Russian artists and designers in the fashion world. Finally, the stories of Russian socialites who became famous models.

This story will transport viewers back to a time when the world’s fashion capitals, with their undisputed authorities and lavish fashion shows, recognized yet another trendsetter—Russia.

Alexander Vasilyev’s unrivaled talent as a storyteller will allow everyone to experience the charm and atmosphere of those forgotten decades.