--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Fashion is primitive in its insistence on…" description: "\"Fashion is primitive in its insistence on exhibitionism, which withers in isolation. The catwalk fashion show with its incandescent hype is its apotheo..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d8/stephen-bayley-23703_apotheosis_fashion-is-primitive-in-its-insistence-o_2934873.png" --- # Fashion is primitive in its insistence on exhibitionism… ![“Fashion is primitive in its insistence on exhibitionism, which withers in isolation. The catwalk fashion show with its incandescent hype is its apotheosis. A ritualized gathering of connoiseurs and the spoilt at a spotlit parade of snazzy pulchritude, it is an industrialized version of the pagan…” quote by Stephen Bayley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d8/stephen-bayley-23703_apotheosis_fashion-is-primitive-in-its-insistence-o_2934873.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d8/stephen-bayley-23703_apotheosis_fashion-is-primitive-in-its-insistence-o_2934873.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d8/stephen-bayley-23703_apotheosis_fashion-is-primitive-in-its-insistence-o_2934873.png) > “Fashion is primitive in its insistence on exhibitionism, which withers in isolation. The catwalk fashion show with its incandescent hype is its apotheosis. A ritualized gathering of connoiseurs and the spoilt at a spotlit parade of snazzy pulchritude, it is an industrialized version of the pagan festivals of renewal. At the end of each seasonal display, a priesthood is enjoined to carry news of the omens to the masses.” [Stephen Bayley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-bayley/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Fashion shows are likened to modern pagan festivals, where exhibitionism and hype create a ritualized spectacle that mirrors ancient renewal rites, ending with a priestly dissemination of omens. **In simple terms:** Fashion shows are modern rituals resembling ancient festivals. Key Takeaway Recognize fashion as cultural performance. Themes culture ritual media Mood critical observational Type cultural analytical When to use this quote - runway events - festival planning - media analysis - branding strategies - social commentary Key Concepts spectacle theory consumerism Questions to Reflect On - How does fashion influence societal values? - What role do designers play as modern priests? A Different Perspective May overlook the commercial exploitation behind the spectacle. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Apotheosis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/apotheosis/) [Apotheosis Ritualized](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/apotheosis-ritualized-4345346/) [Catwalk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/catwalk/) [Catwalk Fashion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/catwalk-fashion-4149886/) [Display](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/display/) [Ends](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ends/) [Exhibitionism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/exhibitionism/) [Fashion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fashion/) [Fashion Incandescent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fashion-incandescent-4345345/) [Fashion Primitive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fashion-primitive-4345344/) [Fashion show](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fashion-show/) [Festivals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/festivals/) [Gathering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gathering/) [Hype](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hype/) [Insistence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/insistence/) [Isolation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/isolation/) [Mass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mass/) [News](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/news/) [Omen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/omen/) [Pagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pagan/) [Parades](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parades/) [Priesthood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/priesthood/) [Primitive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/primitive/) [Renewal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/renewal/) [Shows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shows/) [Spoilt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spoilt/) [Versions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/versions/) ## Related quotes > [Net-a-Porter offers catwalk fashion and trend-driven shopping, but for Mr Porter, while fashion is still important, style is key.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-massenet/net-a-porter-offers-catwalk-fashion-and-trend-driven-shopping-but-for/) [Natalie Massenet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-massenet/) > [I think it's about time that we represent all women on the catwalk because that is a part of fashion. The way I see…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denise-bidot/i-think-it-s-about-time-that-we-represent-all-women-on-the-catwalk-2/) [Denise Bidot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denise-bidot/) > [I think it's about time that we represent all women on the catwalk because that is a part of fashion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denise-bidot/i-think-it-s-about-time-that-we-represent-all-women-on-the-catwalk/) [Denise Bidot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denise-bidot/) > [Not every woman is a prostitute, but prostitution is the natural apotheosis of the feminine attitude.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georges-bataille/not-every-woman-is-a-prostitute-but-prostitution-is-the-natural/) [Georges Bataille](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georges-bataille/) > [Whether it's Mrs Dalloway's lost love or Thérèse Raquin's burgeoning horror, The Paying Guests reminds us of every great novel we've gasped or winced…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-mendelson/whether-it-s-mrs-dalloway-s-lost-love-or-th-r-se-raquin-s-burgeoning/) [Charlotte Mendelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-mendelson/) > [Rome was so mighty that it could not fall. It had to vanish in a cloud, like so many of the mythical heros of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-p-lovecraft/rome-was-so-mighty-that-it-could-not-fall-it-had-to-vanish-in-a-cloud/) [H. P. Lovecraft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-p-lovecraft/) > [...vicinity to the sea is desirable, because it is easier to do nothing by the sea than anywhere else, and because bathing and basking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-f-benson/vicinity-to-the-sea-is-desirable-because-it-is-easier-to-do-nothing/) [E.F. Benson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-f-benson/) > [Art is apotheosis; often, the complaint of beauty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dejan-stojanovic/art-is-apotheosis-often-the-complaint-of-beauty/) [Dejan Stojanovic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dejan-stojanovic/) > [A friend once told me that the real message Bram Stoker sought to convey in 'Dracula' is that a human being needs to live…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-queenan/a-friend-once-told-me-that-the-real-message-bram-stoker-sought-to/) [Joe Queenan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-queenan/) > [People can say what they want, but historically, feminism in the Dominican Republic has been extremely strong. I guess the best way of saying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/junot-diaz/people-can-say-what-they-want-but-historically-feminism-in-the/) [Junot Diaz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/junot-diaz/) > [“Humanity is an organism, inherently rejecting all that is deleterious, that is, wrong, and absorbing after trial what is beneficial, that is, right. If…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-carnegie/humanity-is-an-organism-inherently-rejecting-all-that-is-deleterious/) [Andrew Carnegie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-carnegie/) > [Winston Churchill was a man of blood and a politico without principle, whose apotheosis serves to corrupt every standard of honesty and morality in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-raico/winston-churchill-was-a-man-of-blood-and-a-politico-without-principle/) [Ralph Raico](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-raico/) > [Poetry is the apotheosis of sentiment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madame-de-stael/poetry-is-the-apotheosis-of-sentiment/) [Madame de Stael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madame-de-stael/) > [“This is part of what it means to be a God, that You are a general principal of Being, instantiated throughout all of Being.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-webster/this-is-part-of-what-it-means-to-be-a-god-that-you-are-a-general/) [Sam Webster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-webster/) > [Language is the most elementary aspect to our humanness, probably. In addition to that, it's the embodiment, it's the apotheosis of the human experience,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-carlin/language-is-the-most-elementary-aspect-to-our-humanness-probably-in/) [George Carlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-carlin/) ## More by Stephen Bayley > [I just don't understand how you can not be concerned about your appearance. From time to time I'm vilified as the person who cares…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-bayley/i-just-don-t-understand-how-you-can-not-be-concerned-about-your/) [Stephen Bayley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-bayley/) > [My wife and I both love cooking - I am an advanced male - so we argue about who gets to rustle up dinner.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-bayley/my-wife-and-i-both-love-cooking-i-am-an-advanced-male-so-we-argue/) [Stephen Bayley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-bayley/) > [Everyone has taste, yet it is more of a taboo subject than sex or money. The reason for this is simple: claims about your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-bayley/everyone-has-taste-yet-it-is-more-of-a-taboo-subject-than-sex-or/) [Stephen Bayley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-bayley/) > [I wouldn't mind someone lobbing hand grenades at me, but having to reset the timer on the video recorder puts me into a blood-spitting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-bayley/i-wouldn-t-mind-someone-lobbing-hand-grenades-at-me-but-having-to/) [Stephen Bayley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-bayley/) > [I have a character failing. I am quite incapable of identifying with anything whole-heartedly. Whatever I am doing, I am always planning to do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-bayley/i-have-a-character-failing-i-am-quite-incapable-of-identifying-with/) [Stephen Bayley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-bayley/) > [You must never aspire to 'finish' a house, you can merely hope to start it, and from then on it's an evolutionary process.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-bayley/you-must-never-aspire-to-finish-a-house-you-can-merely-hope-to-start/) [Stephen Bayley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-bayley/) > [We have a relationship of cheerful antagonism. I enjoy twisting his tail and he enjoys wagging his finger at me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-bayley/we-have-a-relationship-of-cheerful-antagonism-i-enjoy-twisting-his/) [Stephen Bayley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-bayley/) > [It is the fragrant lack of practicality that makes high-heeled shoes so fascinating: in terms of static mechanics they induce a sort of insecurity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-bayley/it-is-the-fragrant-lack-of-practicality-that-makes-high-heeled-shoes/) [Stephen Bayley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-bayley/) > [It is sometimes easier to have furniture made than to find things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-bayley/it-is-sometimes-easier-to-have-furniture-made-than-to-find-things/) [Stephen Bayley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-bayley/) > [Watteau is no less an artist for having painted a fascia board while Sainsbury's is no less effective a business for producing advertisements which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-bayley/watteau-is-no-less-an-artist-for-having-painted-a-fascia-board-while/) [Stephen Bayley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-bayley/) > [It is Margaret Thatcher's fault...Inspired by busy little demons, she slashed and burnt her way through the old order. Sentiment was given short shrift,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-bayley/it-is-margaret-thatcher-s-fault-inspired-by-busy-little-demons-she/) [Stephen Bayley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-bayley/) > [Fashion is the most intense expression of the phenomenon of neomania, which has grown ever since the birth of capitalism. Neomania assumes that purchasing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-bayley/fashion-is-the-most-intense-expression-of-the-phenomenon-of-neomania/) [Stephen Bayley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-bayley/) > [I have no particular interest in antiquities or antiques, but I like things to meet a certain aesthetic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-bayley/i-have-no-particular-interest-in-antiquities-or-antiques-but-i-like/) [Stephen Bayley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-bayley/) > [Taste is more to do with manners than appearances. Taste is both myth and reality; it is not a style.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-bayley/taste-is-more-to-do-with-manners-than-appearances-taste-is-both-myth/) [Stephen Bayley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-bayley/) > [If you were born in Britain after World War II, you see a continuous atmosphere of decline, moral and economic and political.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-bayley/if-you-were-born-in-britain-after-world-war-ii-you-see-a-continuous/) [Stephen Bayley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-bayley/) [Explore all 25 Stephen Bayley quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-bayley/) ## More Apotheosis quotes > [Language is the most elementary aspect to our humanness, probably. In addition to that, it's the embodiment, it's the apotheosis of the human experience,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-carlin/language-is-the-most-elementary-aspect-to-our-humanness-probably-in/) [George Carlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-carlin/) > [“This is part of what it means to be a God, that You are a general principal of Being, instantiated throughout all of Being.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-webster/this-is-part-of-what-it-means-to-be-a-god-that-you-are-a-general/) [Sam Webster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-webster/) > [Poetry is the apotheosis of sentiment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madame-de-stael/poetry-is-the-apotheosis-of-sentiment/) [Madame de Stael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madame-de-stael/) > [Winston Churchill was a man of blood and a politico without principle, whose apotheosis serves to corrupt every standard of honesty and morality in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-raico/winston-churchill-was-a-man-of-blood-and-a-politico-without-principle/) [Ralph Raico](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-raico/) > [“Humanity is an organism, inherently rejecting all that is deleterious, that is, wrong, and absorbing after trial what is beneficial, that is, right. If…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-carnegie/humanity-is-an-organism-inherently-rejecting-all-that-is-deleterious/) [Andrew Carnegie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-carnegie/) > [People can say what they want, but historically, feminism in the Dominican Republic has been extremely strong. I guess the best way of saying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/junot-diaz/people-can-say-what-they-want-but-historically-feminism-in-the/) [Junot Diaz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/junot-diaz/) > [A friend once told me that the real message Bram Stoker sought to convey in 'Dracula' is that a human being needs to live…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-queenan/a-friend-once-told-me-that-the-real-message-bram-stoker-sought-to/) [Joe Queenan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-queenan/) > [Art is apotheosis; often, the complaint of beauty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dejan-stojanovic/art-is-apotheosis-often-the-complaint-of-beauty/) [Dejan Stojanovic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dejan-stojanovic/) > [...vicinity to the sea is desirable, because it is easier to do nothing by the sea than anywhere else, and because bathing and basking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-f-benson/vicinity-to-the-sea-is-desirable-because-it-is-easier-to-do-nothing/) [E.F. Benson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-f-benson/) > [Rome was so mighty that it could not fall. It had to vanish in a cloud, like so many of the mythical heros of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-p-lovecraft/rome-was-so-mighty-that-it-could-not-fall-it-had-to-vanish-in-a-cloud/) [H. P. Lovecraft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-p-lovecraft/) > [Whether it's Mrs Dalloway's lost love or Thérèse Raquin's burgeoning horror, The Paying Guests reminds us of every great novel we've gasped or winced…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-mendelson/whether-it-s-mrs-dalloway-s-lost-love-or-th-r-se-raquin-s-burgeoning/) [Charlotte Mendelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-mendelson/) > [Not every woman is a prostitute, but prostitution is the natural apotheosis of the feminine attitude.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georges-bataille/not-every-woman-is-a-prostitute-but-prostitution-is-the-natural/) [Georges Bataille](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georges-bataille/) > [ That strain of anti-monopoly crusading egalitarianism really runs throughout American history from \[Tomas\] Jefferson to Woodrow Wilson, that finds its apotheosis in \[Louis\] Brandeis,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-rosen/that-strain-of-anti-monopoly-crusading-egalitarianism-really-runs/) [Jeffrey Rosen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-rosen/) > [“Nothing is so mischievous as the apotheosis of error.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-bacon/nothing-is-so-mischievous-as-the-apotheosis-of-error/) [Francis Bacon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-bacon/) > [To give generously but appropriately and then, most difficult of all, and as the full apotheosis of the art, with feeling, in the moment…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-whyte/to-give-generously-but-appropriately-and-then-most-difficult-of-all/) [David Whyte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-whyte/) [Browse all 29 Apotheosis quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/apotheosis/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Fashion is primitive in its insistence on exhibitionism, which withers in isolation. The catwalk fashion show with its incandescent hype is its apotheosis. A ritualized gathering of connoiseurs and the spoilt at a spotlit parade of snazzy pulchritude, it is an industrialized version of the pagan festivals of renewal. 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