The Spanish luxury fashion house comes under fire after its latest campaign features children holding stuffed animals that appear to be wearing bondage-inspired outfits.
- Nov 24, 2022
AceShowbiz - Bella Hadid is distancing herself from Balenciaga after the brand receives backlash over its BDSM-themed ad campaign. The model shared on her Instagram account some pictures of her modeling for the Spanish high-fashion house's latest collection only to delete it later.
In one of the photos that she shared on Tuesday, November 22, Bella could be seen donning the luxury brand's "maxi hourglass" coat that costs $4,290 from its Spring/Summer 2023 collection while posing inside an office. The 26-year-old beauty later appeared to delete the post on Wednesday as the brand sparked outrage for its bondage-themed campaign featuring children.
The controversial campaign, which was taken by photographer Gabriele Galimberti, saw children holding stuffed animals that appeared to be wearing bondage-inspired outfits. Making it even more bizarre, an eagle-eyed fan pointed out that one image included an excerpt from a U.S. Supreme Court case that upheld part of a federal child pornography law.
Following the backlash, the brand quickly pulled the controversial images off of social media and completely wiped out its Instagram account. It also issued an apology in a statement which read, "We apologize for displaying unsettling documents in our campaign. We take this matter very seriously and are taking legal action against the parties responsible for creating the set and including unapproved items for our Spring 23 campaign photoshoot. We strongly condemn abuse of children in any form. We stand for children's safety and well-being."
Gabriele also shared his own statement, in which he denied that he had any input on the creative direction of the photoshoot. "I am not in a position to comment [on] Balenciaga's choices, but I must stress that I was not entitled in whatsoever manner to neither choose the products, nor the models, nor the combination of the same," he wrote in part in an Instagram post.
The photographer went on to share that he was tasked to light the prepared set and shoot in his "signature style." He further stressed that he had no control over the "direction of the campaign and the choice of the objects displayed."
