Comments on: Controversy: Lara Stone for Calvin Klein 2010 – Gang Rape or Fashion?

By: Glen

Glen — Sun, 16 Sep 2012 04:07:26 +0000

The First and Third images do show male supremacy however neither the second nor fourth shows no hierarchy of genders whatsoever. The last two I believe are not images of violence of woman at all, rather violence against PEOPLE who happen to be woman.

By: N

Thu, 09 Aug 2012 05:18:03 +0000

As a fashion Photographer Myself. I often find that people are quick to judge editorials.
Yes we may be capturing violence, sexualised content, death. Have you ever considered the idea behind the shock factor is to show you what society thrives on. I myself just recently completed an editorial spread about “celebrity suicides” the message was not to glamorise death but rather show that how the media portray the deaths of the rich and famous is influencing societies youth into thinking its ok to cop out on life when it gets hard. SO yes we want you to SEE it, see how this has become the acceptable standard in society, you blame us for creating these things but we simply mirror the attributes that the population find acceptable.

By: M.

M. — Mon, 02 Apr 2012 06:08:54 +0000

To be honest with you, I do not know how one could NOT see the violence in the first advertisement with Lara Stone. To me, it’s obvious. Her face looks anguished, pained, miserable. Her expression clearly does not lend to the notion of her being “in control,” as some have described. Not only is her expression alluding to rape, but the fact that one of the men is grabbing her hair (thus looking as if he’s constraining her) also makes the advertisement scream “violence.” The blood-red borders, too, only add to this effect.

At a quick glance (as most advertisements are received), I do not get “strength, respect, pleasure,” rather, I get a feeling of severe tension and desperate struggle, which is outright unsettling. The colors, the location, the perceived movement, the expressions, all contribute to this.

By: Iesha

Iesha — Sat, 03 Mar 2012 01:13:00 +0000

I think Calvin Klein video and print ads were all for the sake of art. Art can be sometimes a great issue specially when you get to talk about the way they are being expressed and not just that it’s people who make it as an issue. Art needs to be understood very carefully. It’s just that I am really in favor of this video and ads but just merely seeing the other side of it. And if Lara was really being raped or somewhat abuse, then she would have file a case against the company. I really don’t think so that it’s all about promoting violence and depicting woman it’s just a pure expression of art.

By: anon

anon — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 00:51:03 +0000

Very interesting topic. Here are some of my thoughts and questions. But it shouldn’t be viewed as art if it’s an advert in a mainstream magazine. companies should have a moral responsibility to portray women accurately and respectfully in their adverts, there are too many of these images around. Jean Kilbourne’s documentary’s offer really interesting insights into violence against women in the media and it’s effects if anyone want’s to learn more about it. The scary thing is, that more women are raped than ever before (by a large percentage) as well as many more domestic abuse cases. Why do you think this is? There must be a reason, I’m not saying it’s necessarily the media, but i’m just interested in what’s happened over the last 50 years or so. Could it be the over sexualised world we live in reinforcing the idea that women are sex objects or ‘play things’?

By: anon

anon — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 00:49:30 +0000

But it shouldn’t be viewed as art if it’s an advert in a mainstream magazine. companies should have a moral responsibility to portray women accurately and respectfully in their adverts, there are too many of these images around. Jean Kilbourne’s documentary’s offer really interesting insights into violence against women in the media and it’s effects if anyone want’s to learn more about it. The scary thing is, that more women are raped than ever before (by a large percentage) as well as many more domestic abuse cases. Why do you think this is? There must be a reason, I’m not saying it’s necessarily the media, but i’m just interested in what’s happened over the last 50 years or so. Could it be the over sexualised world we live in reinforcing the idea that women are sex objects or ‘play things’?

By: Beautifully Invisible

Beautifully Invisible — Sat, 06 Nov 2010 00:35:00 +0000

I’d love to see the responses to that experimental group, although, in a way, I think these blog comments are a good indicator of how subjective this truly is. Even in these comments we’ve seen various responses to the images. I see aggression, but not violence against woman. I see sexuality, but not rape. I see boredom,but not detachment. That being said, your comment about the bloodlike smears is quite interesting. I am not sure what those are meant to depict, if not violence?

I also see your point about the ads being in Lucky or InStyle, but at the same time – I see worse in mainstream media all the time. Heck, I see worse on the evening news!

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By: Beautifully Invisible

Beautifully Invisible — Sat, 06 Nov 2010 00:18:00 +0000

I 100% agree with everything you said!
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By: Beautifully Invisible

Beautifully Invisible — Sat, 06 Nov 2010 00:05:00 +0000

Interesting question regarding what someone who has gone through sexual abuse would think. My guess would be that for someone who has lived through it, even the slightest allusion to violence would be upsetting.

I do think there is roughness in these ads… but I don’t find it violent. To me, she just appears to be someone who enjoys that type of sexual activity (hair pulling, ripping off clothes, etc.)
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By: Beautifully Invisible

Beautifully Invisible — Sat, 06 Nov 2010 00:00:00 +0000

I think you are right about the Superette ads. It does seem like they are meant to portray accidents. Yet, knowing that, they still don’t inspire me to buy clothing!
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