Zoe Toulis

“Rising from sea foam, she gracefully stepped onto Paphos, leaving a trail of blooming roses, her beauty was bright and manipulative as she amped people’s hearts from sorrow. They call her Aphrodite, but I call her my goddess, my divine feminine. She makes me feel human and makes me glow from within she is love.

Aphrodite is a complex goddess, even thought she is full of love she can divide love, she can make something so buttery and smooth feel sharp and jagged. She must, to let us know what love is, to show people how to love. How are we to know what to love is if we haven’t even had a bad comparison to compare it to? She isn’t being hostile, she is being fair, considerate to herself and you.

Aphrodite makes us celebrate the way love makes us feel, how it makes us grow. Everything we celebrate is out of love no matter how small or how large it is. Aphrodite is always there to show us how to love in that moment. She unites people young and old and makes life bloom into a beautiful red rose.

If you are ever out of love you can speak to her, she lives beyond us. She flows through our music, the food we eat and the way we speak. She will always be there to celebrate you no matter where you are.

I wanted my design to show her story and I also wanted aspects of Cypriot and ancient Greek history throughout it. My ancestors the Minoans are beautiful strong people. Their earliest civilization at the time and the way that they worshipped and viewed their earth, body and relationships was so interesting and different to what today’s societal standards are. I wanted to celebrate ancient Greek women and goddesses and how they hold their power in their position. A lot of Minion women may have been more powerful than men and the way they celebrated their bodies and didn’t shy away from being a women without apology is very empowering to me and needs to be celebrated. They nurtured and taught their findings to each other and they made unity throughout Greece. I see Aphrodite’s doings when I look at them and what they accomplished as they are her children who she loved and took care of.

The way my design flows and hangs represents love flowing through Aphrodite’s body as she knows how to carry herself. Having the garments be tight around the waist represents ancient Minoan fashion, as they accentuated their waists and made sure to show their beautiful figures. I really wanted this design to be flowy and soft to the eye. I also wanted it to be intricate so you can get excited to look at every side of the garment and the ways the fabric curves and folds. I love my culture and want to show you how beautiful and complex it is.”

Resene Whitecliffe Colour of Fashion clothing - 2023

Photography by Jonathan Kraettli

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