Earlier this month, the new print ads for Versace went viral. Not in a good way, like, “OMG these ads are so sexy!” They went viral in a bad way, like “are we supposed to believe that a 21 year old is old enough to have a six-year-old and a baby?” And: “why does it feel like those black children are being used as props?” And: “IS THAT A CHAIN WRAPPED AROUND THAT BABY?” So, yes, the ads were seen as controversial for several reasons. Bruce Weber shot the ad campaign with Gigi Hadid and Karlie Kloss in Chicago, and he promised that there was more context to come, namely that the campaign was a love letter to Chicago or something. Come to Chicago and visit our famously chain-wrapped babies! Versace issued a statement about the controversies (ignoring the issue of the chain around the baby) too:
“The campaign is made of a series of tableaux, some real-life and some fantastical. One part of the story is very glamourous, almost a fantasy, a kind of dream. The other part of the story is the same people, but in their real lives. They’re on the streets of Chicago. They’re with their friends and families. The combination perfectly illustrates the relevance and wearability of modern Versace for all parts of one’s life, from the ultra-glamourous to the everyday. The images were shot in Chicago and, in classic Weber style, womenswear and menswear are shown together. Some of the campaign photos reflect a take on the modern family, which is wonderfully Weber and very Versace.”
There’s more to the statement, but the rest of it is just written by a PR firm about the versatility of Versace clothing. When really, Versace isn’t panicking about these ads at all. They like that the ads are seen as controversial and newsworthy. GET HYPE! Anyway, Versace released the Bruce Weber-directed commercial for this campaign and if anything, this just an another awkward layer over a campaign that already had a patina of discomfort. Fast forward to around the 25-second mark of this video to see Gigi and Karlie pose-harding in between shots of black people dancing (I’m not joking).
This feels like a spoof. Especially every shot of Karlie Kloss, right? The aim was probably to give everything a “United Colors of Benetton” feel, only everything just seems so forced, uncool and awkward.
Photos courtesy of Instagram, Versace.
This is a joke, right? The song, the posing, the concept – horrible.
The song- OMG. Who will this appeal to?
It really does look like an SNL spoof. Although, I would say that Gigi looks far more awkward than Karlie.
And all the problematic stuff – do you think they did this on purpose? All publicity is good publicity?
It’s almost as if Donatella Versace is totally out of touch with reality and the label is completely out of step with our time. Lolz… I guess.
You nailed it
Versace loves Chicago so much that instead of hiring real Chicagoans to model their clothes, they just let them be used as props in their everyday gear, while letting all the focus go to the models wearing their brand. It’s true love.
What the hell did I just watch?!
They hired Eddie from Ab Fab as their stylist?
Little Brianna just wanna escape from Donatella and her face of doom.
In addition to being beautiful, Brianna is one brave baby. How many kids would let Donatella hold them?
I always thought Gigi was a better model than Kendull, but geez, she looks so boring in these photos. And that’s not even considering all the problematic issues going on. I feel like a lot of these companies are trolling us, because they don’t seem to care about social issues, just that they are receiving PR. All press is good press, apparently.
Gigi is a total charisma void. Whenever she is on screen she is just not believable in the role, she is just not a model. Karlie Kloss is way better, but the awkward and tone-deaf concept of the ad and pictures, the mismatch of the random images and the uncomfortable way it was all squished together just make this whole campaign a such a fail, that not even Karlie’s dimples can save it.
(Unimportant, but BTW, I take no issue whatsoever with Gigi being portrayed as a possible mother of a 6 y.o. She looks like she could be a mother to a 15 y.o., easily).
Barf. That is all.
“Is there a chain around that black baby?”
…there are some things that just make me slide down my chair in a never-ending groan.
My friend and I have a running joke about whenever one of these things come happen, be it commercials, movies or ads, where we guess how many black people were on set just staring at the f*ckery go down unable to stop it.
Also…I appreciate the idea behind presenting interracial families, but this whole thing is awkward as hell. It’s just Gigi Hadid with some convenient black family as her accessories. Cheerios did it better…twice.
Lol right. This is why we’ve perfected the art of the side eye because that’s all I got after some of these tone deaf ads. Cheerios is the gold standard
“f*ckery go down unable to stop it”
Lol! So so funny. I couldn’t agree more….
Yes, I wanted not to be so sensitive because I too appreciate the interracial couple inclusion, but you are right they seem more like props for Gigi than a depiction of modern interracial families.
Also, I find funny how when these brands try to show the “diversity” of a place, they put white people with another race (just one) culture like a background.
And how they showed the young black girls dancing in traditional dance outfits while the models watched and then finished the commercial by having Gigi and co awkwardly bobbing along in the same outfits to show racial unity or something?
Yep, #DIVERSITY.
Her face in that photo…she looks like she’s a billion miles away. Maybe if she had looked engaged with her prop family it wouldn’t be so cringy. They’re all smiling and looking at her and she’s all “Who are these people? Where did my life go wrong?”
“Hold up. When he asked me to marry him, he didn’t tell me he came with children! Oh camera…. oh shinyy…”
Amen. Good grief.
Cheerios did it better….twice. so, so true. And gigI looks super checked out.
Those Cheerios commercials were fantastic.
After seeing this ludicrous clip, Versace literally knows NOTHING about Chicago.
no offence but: what’s so special about Chicago and where is the connection to (Italian) brand Versace?
I’m from Austria and I have been to Chicago and it’s a nice place but I seriously don’t get it (aside from all other points already stated above by Eternal Side Eye et al).
I love my city and lived here since 1964. We have always been known as the “Second City” (second to New York.) I like to think our town is special in dozens of ways, but it would be fruitless to go on about it.
The beautiful skyline of our city was shown, but the theme of the video shows little about the city’s character.
Tbh based on the video: nothing.
Which isn’t to say Chicago isn’t special or beautiful, but the video is the most bland unoriginal mishmash of all these different tropes and cultural aspects that you could tell me it was Versache for New Jersey and I’d believe you.
For some reason they wanted to associate with Chicago (maybe because of all the leather they seem to have featured in this campaign?) but truly didn’t show anything unique about it that would connect to a viewer.
Chicago is a great city, but this video didn’t reflect that at all.
Chicago is a FANTASTIC city, but no, this is bad. Like, really bad.
Pro tip: using “no offence” before you spew out a comment that is snobbish at best and borderline xenophobic at worst doesn’t actually make it any less offensive.
Lifelong Chicagoan here, born and raised, and this video is just absurd. I DON’T GET IT. Looks like winter and they seem cold, so…Chicago?
It’s bad. It’s as if all the talent involved just cancelled each other out. And my god-who is that awful singer??!!??
You see talent here? From the dead-eyed Hadid sisters?
Bruce Weber & Versace are veterans in this business and should have been able to put something together that was better than this. Yes he was given the sisyphean task of directing the Hadid sisters, but he should have been able to. This is a mess.
Fair enough.
Just googled it. The singer is an opera singer – Keith Milkie. The original song was by Tony Bennett. This one does not even come close to Tony’s golden voice.
What in the actual f_ck?! Are you serious? There is a CHAIN around that kid. And someone tell me why the only slightly less plastic version of Bella Bot is even a model. Her dead face does nothing for any campaign. Of course, this “concept” is a total failure, regardless of the model. There is a damn chain around a black baby. I am actually enraged.
Versace: “Aren’t black people just the CUTEST?! Look at them dance around like that! Imagine, our white lady models just walking right there down among them! PR gold!”
Puke.
That’s terrible. The shots of Kloss look like outtakes from a Black Box video from the 90s. I think the most awkward moment has to be Kloss and Hadid bonding with the locals.
Hadid just looks so old to me. I don’t know why. I think it’s the full face and strong nasal labial folds. But even looking older than her years the shots with the male model and two kids looks ridiculous.
She looks like a woman in her 40’s who has gone overboard with the fillers and botox, and had a crappy brow lift, to me. She looks like Fergie.
@Itene YES! I always wondered who she looked like but could never pin point it. She looks just like fergie!
Yes. Fergie after she just had her wisdom teeth out.
This print ad is tone deaf!
I’ve been seeing this pic floating around ig for weeks and the longer I stare at it the more problematic it becomes. There’s so much wrong here. Just so much.
Too much. I sat there for a while wondering if THIS was the best shot that they came up with. They really wanted a reaction.
Right. Who came up with the whole chain concept and assumed it was ok?? That it was a good idea? That it would come across well? What in the actual world is going on.
I also love how both father and son are staring at her like she is their whole world but she can’t be bothered to pay attention to either of them. Not even her chained in baby.
I agree. Father and son are gazing at her adoringly, and her face reads, “Help! Get me out of here!” Plus her hair is all in her face. This is not a good shot, although the guys look great. Baby girl just looks uncomfortable. I can’t believe they chose this one.
THANK YOU.
It bugs me that they’re giving her all these adoring loving looks and she’s in full on: “Don’t ruin my shot. It’s model time!” mode.
And the baby just looks like, “Momma…you and I are gonna have a long talk after this white woman stops acting the fool.”
I thought Gigi’s face was just stupidly indifferent, but the more I look at it, the more uncomfortable it makes me because her aloofness stands out in such contrast to the rest of their expressions. Like, here we have a mixed family, but all the darker skinned family members stare at the light skinned woman adoringly while she stares off in the distance.
Give me the last two seconds of that commercial, cut literally everything else out. Boom perfection.
This. Those kids are so cute.
Cut out all the out of touch alien looking waspy models- much better.
This reeks of colonialism, much like Taylor Swifts video from a while back. Just packaged better.
Kissing a baby and duck-lipping NEXT to a baby are such different things. Mind your lipstick. *eyeroll*
Her expression in the header pic makes it look like she’s being held hostage.
“Controversial and newsworthy” = contrived and shitty. Don’t have to even have to strive to be mediocre anymore, just be terrible PR-package it as “ironic.”
And Hadid’s body language with her handsome counterpart is SO BAD, along with the “trapped” baby, that I feel like I’m witnessing a crime, and not just against good taste.
I have so many issues with this, but I’m plain out tired.
I will say that that baby girl is serving life, she’s the highlight of this whole mess meanwhile, Gigi looks scared as hell.
Same way I feel.
Both Hadid girls are BORING!!! These photo compositions are so stupid not even Karli Kloss can make the cool.
Agreed with all your points.
Gigi’s print is only a slight improvement than motion. Her catwalk is horrific.
This chain – a great big fat NO. There is NO purpose for this chain other than to cause controversy and to get people talking about the ads.
I loved those Benetton ads, I used to wallpaper my bedroom with them. They were super pretty.
The 80s Benetton Ads were AWESOME. That was what you could call aspirational (and the Esprit ads from the late 80s too). They just showed such a worldly cosmopolitan viewpoint, totally respectful of cultures but in the context of Benetton. So simple, and so successful and the people were all so beautiful because they were so different from each other.
So, let me guess – the storyline for the series of ads is that she’s a bigamist? Two different families? Ebony and Ivory reboot? Just wondering. I can’t tell if they are too different people. All blondes look alike to me….
Lol…all blondes look alike to me…. good one
cringe worthy
I mean…she could have had the kid at 15 which is possible these days. Besides that everything looks so forced and fake and offensive.
Well…that was bad, wasn’t it? The first thing I thought with the chain was the babe’s little fingers getting caught in between the links. Ouch! I love her puffs, though. They’re the best thing about this whole cluster.
Is that seriously the best shot they could get of Hadid? That is terrible.
Is it me or just Gigi’s face look puffy? Or waxy? Weird.
As a born-and-raised Chicagoan, this is an abomination.
There’s no way that baby could come out of Gigi. Casting fail.
GigI is a terrible dancer.
Shades of Zoolander in that video.
Um – they are ALL being used as props, that’s what modelling is ffsakes.
That is a terrible pic of Gigi. Even the baby out-modeled her.
Wow – that was 1:30 of my life now utterly wasted.
That commercial was friggin terrible!
No personality or warmth in the images. Just what the hell were they thinking? Who gave the okay for that first image?
It’s as though Gigi cannot connect with the concept.
She looks pissed off. I know that models are supposed to employ RBF or that soulless look, but she looks mad.
I can’t look at Gigi in these ads without thinking of Jocelyn Wilderstein.
Fashion does this all the time, being provocative and controversial to cause up a storm. If you go around fashion forums, many go around defending these things saying fashion has always been about pushing boundaries. No, dude. Fashion is about clothing, and clothing is about keeping us safe from weather. Please explain to me how selling overpriced coats is in any way related to the racial tension in the USA, or any other social matter.
I used to be a big model junkie, and the fashion industry is fun to follow. But God, these people seriously need someone to put them in their place. They take themselves so seriously.
Honestly, I don’t care about the age issue – makeup ages the face, anyway – but the chain…THE CHAIN. What the hell were they thinking?
The video is so ridiculous that I almost though it was a sketch from a comedy program
The only saving grace here is the gorgeous man who booped the baby’s nose. Who is that??
I’m from Chicago and I still don’t understand what I’m supposed to take out of this except a really pushed “white savior” theme. Are they saying Versace is going to save the south side and unify it by putting dance uniforms on children? Or that the white girl saved her black children from being in a dance troop – an image often used to associate culture in a poor neighborhood? I mean, for heavens sake, put the skyline and a corner bakery in it somewhere and call it a day.
OMG that video is so pretentiously, laughingly bad in every aspect and the stills are just as awful. Poor little Brianna looks like she’s trying her best to get away; too bad she’s chained in her stroller.
Wait, why is the chain there?!?
Is her facial expression in the photo supposed to suggest she has been abducted by the guy? Then -and only then- this would be good modeling. It would be interesting to know what the photographer’s instructions for Gigi really were.
Karlie could star in “Taken” as head of the kidnappers gang with that expression.
This Zoolander 3 trailer looks to be the most biting spoof of the fashion industry yet!