Terry Richardson (of course!) shot this banned Sisley ad in 2001, featuring Josie Maran and a sexualized cow udder. Oh, Terry.
The UK Advertising Standards Agency recently ruled that a Miu Miu ad campaign image featuring Mia Goth photographed by Steven Meisel was “irresponsible and was likely to cause serious offence”.
Mia Goth for Miu Miu SS15. Steven Meisel.
Dazed and Confused has a great retrospective of many other controversial ads, some of which were pulled by advertisers or publishers, or banned by state entities.
Although the image of the 22-year-old Nymphomaniac actress might seem harmless – as Zing Tsjeng pointed out, if you were going to complain about something, surely it’d be the film poster for the Lars von Trier flick where she’s in the throes of orgasm – a Vogue reader argued that it showed “a child dressed as an adult in a sexually suggestive pose”. The ASA agreed, feeling that Goth’s youthful appearance, amplified by clothes they claimed were slightly too big and combined with the fact she was alone in a room, was suggestive of child sexualisation and therefore dangerous. “She is 22 and is not dressed provocatively,” argued one Twitter user. “The ASA is throwing a tantrum.”
“Fashion v censorship: a history of banned ads” [dazeddigital.com]
Benetton’s 1992 campaign featured the final moments of AIDS patient David Kirby’s life.
This 2011 Miu Miu campaign shot by Bruce Weber with actress Hailee Steinfeld was “irresponsible” because trains.
Master trolls Tom Ford and Terry Richardson teamed up on this one in 2007.
One of Terry Richardson’s many Sisley ads that fell afoul of complainers.
