Saturday 9 April 2016

Entry #5 April 9th, 2016

April 7th, 2016
Huffington Post, Jamie Feldman

Overview:
   Gucci's "Cruise 2016 Campaign" Ad has been banned from the United Kingdom. One of the models in the video advertisement was deemed "unhealthily thin" by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA). The ASA also stated that the model's head and lower body appear to be 'out of proportion' with her arms and torso. The dark make up around her eyes and her somber expression makes her look 'gaunt'. They added saying that the advertisement gives woman a negative attitude about their appearance.
   The Gucci ad first appeared at the end of 2015 in December on "The Times" website. Gucci acknowledged the ASA saying that the advertisement was targeted to mature, sophisticated viewers. They said that they don’t see how someone can be deemed so thin that it's unhealthy.
   The ASA has told Gucci directly that unless changes are made to the advertisement, it will not be allowed to the public's eyes. A new cut of the advertisement has been released showing the "too thin" model at different camera angles.
   The regulations for models have changed dramatically. The ASA has banned a numerous amount of advertisements in the last year simply for models being too thin. Last year, France changed the ruling that a model will be banned if they are not over a certain body mass index. A healthier image of body perception is currently being put into place in the fashion industry.

                  'Thin' Gucci model leaning against wall

Opinion:
   In my opinion, this article shows the controversy between what is considered healthy or not. Most people think of unhealthiness as inserting toxins into out body or overeating. We don’t think about how unhealthy it is to starve or force ourselves to throw up after meals. I'm glad that there are authorities who take this matter very seriously. When I see skinny models on advertisements, I get one dark image in my mind: the holocaust. The images of holocaust survivors are gruesome. They have almost no colour and you can see their rib cages. How much of a physical difference is there between them and starving models.
   Anorexia and Bulimia are problems in our world that can be traced back to fashion advertisements. Gucci, Victoria Secret, Louis Vuitton, etc. are all examples of companies with models who can be argued as "twigs". When we see these gorgeous 100lbs. models walking around, we feel guilty about how our body looks compared to theirs. To me, it seems like these companies encourage you to starve yourself daily just to get that thigh gap. 97% of women have an "I hate my body" moment once a day. It is because of these stressful ads forced onto people that drive them to the perception of thinking they will always be overweight.

   I cannot say that I endure the gloomy thoughts of having to lose weight, but I do know the negative thoughts that come as you see someone on TV with the "ideal body". Society should not be showing advertisements of feeble people walking around in expensive clothing, but of those who want a positive change in their body. We should promote going to the gym and eating healthy foods simply because we want to live a healthy life. 

No comments:

Post a Comment