Gay Gang Bang?
When picking an ad for this assignment, I remembered a Dolce & Gabbana ad that I’d seen on one of my favorite blogs, fashionologie.com. The particular image was highlighted because it had been pulled from the ad campaign; the blogger wondered why (since although the image is overtly sexual and violent, most of the ads from the campaign are similar). Most commenters seemed to agree: the ad is pretty offensive. When I searched for more ads from the campaign, the above picture came up. These ads would most likely be found in upscale, high fashion magazines.
In both ads, a person is pictured in a weak, powerless state, while a group of people in power circle around and look as if they are about to force themselves sexually on their victims. The male victim definitely grabs my attention more than the female does- he is, after all, naked. There is an uncomfortable vibe to these pictures, because the subjects are all very sleek and attractive, but the situation is very odd. The instigators look beautiful and wealthy, professional almost (not to mention that they are for the most part fair-skinned). It is harder to tell what the background of the victims are- the naked man is difficult to gauge; for the woman, she is wearing clothes that could suggest that she’s poor or a prostitute (again, it’s pretty hard to tell).
The idea of gang rape is really what gives these photos their tedious edge. Several blog-commenters on Fashionologie have agreed that the female photo is offensive and dangerous, though an argument continues as to whether or not the image can be celebratory of the BDSM movement. The ads really rub me the wrong way, and I find it continually hard to believe that these types of images can still be found in our magazines.
Comments
these ads are ridiculous and i can't believe they actually ran in magazines for any period of time, even if it was brief. the company knew what it was doing and i don't understand the message behind the sexually explicit, offensive ads.
Posted by: taylor | April 3, 2007 01:13 AM
Whatever, it is art and people have a right to express themselves however they see fit. We have the freedom of speech and press in this country and images such as this should not be censored. It may be offensive to some and beauty to others.
Posted by: Devin | January 2, 2008 09:12 PM