so why is 'fashion' not considered an appropriate medium to address social issues or the ghosts of them, current or past? who says that fashion must be a trivial, vain platform incapable of addressing the darkness that is such a vital part of human nature? isn't a fashion itself a very primal conflict between fascination of the flesh and the desire to hide it, hate it, cover it away? why is it such a horrific offense to take photographs at a location deemed by a specific group of individuals to be a physical representation of tragedy? how does technology transcend physicality? what about the auras and energies imprinted in a physical place, especially after destruction that will be there regardless of the uses humanity designates as proper for them? why can't the fashioned self or site be a platform for exploring anger and extremity? what is it here that confronts notions of perceived vulnerability, reality and possession? is it this destruction of notions that makes the critics so uncomfortable to begin with? or are they made to be uncomfortable because this forces them to confront their own ideas on death, beauty, morality, brutality? who is to judge a creative project's level of creative contribution and so-called good taste to begin with? why is contemporary europe still so haunted by its past?

I agree with the idea that a fashion shoot can be social commentary, but I don't think this particular fashion shoot had any point other than clothes look good on a minimalist background. The male model (as shown on the Daily Mail article) really looks like a bored tourist who has vaguely heard of the Holocaust but isn't sure what actually happened, while the female model looks like a Audrey Hepburn look alike traipsing through an outdoor mall.

While it is nice that the design of the memorial complements high fashion, the photo shoot misses the point that this is supposed to be a place of reflection and mourning for a very tragic event no one wants to repeat. Since the shoot violates the policy of not having a commercial shoot at all, you can't blame the memorial people for being a bit perturbed.

I like fashion, but shoots like this are what give the industry a reputation for being shallow and self-centered. A more thoughtful shoot, one not centered on selling clothes, would have been much better for promoting fashion as a socially aware industry.