De Sol a Sol

‍

Translation of the article "DE SOL A SOL", published in Brazil's largest daily newspaper "O Globo" in Rio de Janeiro.

‍

From the sun to the sun

The bikini will soon have its own museum - in Germany!
Brazil and the evolution of his bikini, especially in Rio, will be the subject of a separate section of the exhibition.

The famous writer on French fashion - Diana Vreeland (1903-1989) - once said: "The bikini is the most important invention of the 20th century, after the atomic bomb".
The admiration for the two-piece, named after the Bikini Atoll on which the Americans carried out atomic bomb tests, is also shared by the German entrepreneur Alexander Ruscheinsky. He is standing in front of the world's first museum for swimwear history, the BikiniARTmuseum, which opens on 4.1.2020 in Bad Rappenau, Germany.
"I am fascinated by the diversity of this object," says Alex, who has been dedicated to the project for five years. He enumerates some important pillars: "The creation of the bikini by Louis Réard in Paris in 1946; the French actress Brigitte Bardot in the film "And so God created woman" from 1956 and finally the invention of the model Fio-Dental (thong), which Brazilian women use in an inflationary way and which puts the butt in the limelight for the first time!".

To turn his vision into reality, Alex saved neither trouble nor money. "I have already invested 40 million BRL (Brazilian Real)", says the entrepreneur, who commissioned various researchers and experts to look around bikini centres in France, the USA and Brazil.
"In France, we work with one of the world's biggest beach fashion specialists, Ghislaine Rayer. In the museum, we will exhibit over 500 historical models, such as original bikinis by Louis Réard, as well as 250 works of art related to the theme of bikini. Brazil will have its own department," says Alex, who has also interviewed designers such as Jaquline de Biase and Cidinho Pereira and is assisted by none other than model Magda Cotrofe.

The approach for the Brazilian department is extensive. It starts with icons such as Helô Pinheiro and Leila Diniz, continues with pioneers such as David Azulay, inventor of the lace-up and jeans bikini, Cidinho Pereira, inventor of the Fio-Dental and Asa-Delta, and ends with a look back at major brands such as Lenny Niemeyer.
Jaqueline de Biase points out the importance of having her own swimwear museum: "I am delighted to see that beach fashion, the symbol of Rio, is well represented abroad!

"We will exhibit more than 500 historical models, such as original bikinis by Louis Réard and 250 works of art" - Alexander Ruscheinsky, entrepreneur

‍

Picture text above: Catalogue from 1960, below a bathing cart from Germany, 1893

Picture text center: Swimsuit by Triya, feminism will also be a theme in the museum, Nuit et Jour cover, below: Bikini, the most sensational report of the century piece, 28 pages

Picture text below: Magazine from the 1940s, right picture on canvas by Robson Reis Marques from Cabo Frio (state of Rio)

‍

‍