Abramovich's Girlfriend Apologises For Posing On Unclad 'black Woman' Chair

The girlfriend of Russian tycoon Roman Abramovich has dramatically apologised after being accused of racism by posing in a chair that resembled a bound and semi-Unclad black woman.

Art expert and fashion guru Dasha Zhukova, 32, said: 'I utterly abhor racism, and would like to apologise to anyone who has been offended by this image.'

The photograph showing her sitting in the shocking chair was published 'completely out of context', she said.

The chair - designed by Norwegian artist Bjarne Melgaard - was 'an art work intended specifically as a commentary on gender and racial politics', she said.

The image appeared in blog Buro 24/7 run by a leading Russian fashionista, Miroslava Duma, accompanying an interview with Abramovich's partner, who is the founder of a leading Moscow art gallery.

It shows 32-year-old Zhukova wearing a white shirt and jeans sitting on a chair, the seat of which is mounted on a lifelike model of a Coverless black woman lying on her back in bondage gear with her legs up in the air and belted to her body.

The image created a storm in Britain and other Western countries.

'Certain things just shouldn't exist,' said Cosmopolitan.com's pop culture editor Alex Rees.

'But if they must... they really shouldn't be photographed and uploaded onto the Internet -- and especially not on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.'

The blog also apologised.

'Buro 24/7 is against racism and everything that may humiliate people,' said an editorial statement.

'We sincerely apologise if the posted photos insulted our readers.'

Russian art expert Andrei Yerofeyev said the chair was inspired by British pop artist Allen Jones, who created similar sculptures featuring white women.

Zhukova is the founder of Garage Center for Contemporary Culture, a gallery in Moscow's Gorky Park.

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