Ontinyent Museum to host exhibition on the bikini and Francoist Spain

The Textile Museum of Ontinyent is launching a new exhibition titled ‘Under the Sun of the Regime: The bikini and “modernity” in Francoist Spain. Benidorm (1950-1970)’. The exhibition, supported by the Diputació de València and the University of Valencia, examines the contradictions of Spanish society during the dictatorship.

Through archival photographs, historical pieces, cinema posters, and magazines, the display analyzes how the bikini became an icon of modernity and how tourism in Benidorm was used to project an image of an open, modern Spain to Europe. This image stood in contrast to the social and moral controls imposed by the regime, particularly regarding the freedoms of women.