TEHRAN, Iran -- A battery of flashbulbs pop to the rhythm of a leggy model sashaying down the makeshift quadrangular catwalk, striking a pose for the audience at every corner. Sporting a billowing, Chinese-inspired gown with matching red slippers, her neck and bare feet are covered in artfully wrapped white gauze. Other models exhibit chunky silver jewelry while all wear a uniform black head covering that obscures the eyes. For the men, blindfolds and chest-hugging shirts complement graceful linen waistcoats, cargo pants and accessories. At the show's conclusion, the designer is escorted out by the models to a storm of applause. But the success of the show does not hide the fact that it has taken place in an underground parking lot specially converted into a catwalk. All female audience-members wear the headscarves and baggy manteaus that Iran's Islamic regulations oblige them to wear in public. "The best place I could find was this parking (lot)," said Nina Ghafari, the 26-year old Iranian-American designer who came up with the idea for the show. "I tried for a museum and a gallery but I couldn't get permission."
In Tehran, Islamic Fashionistas Brood Over Chinese Valentino
