Marc Jacobs is a misogynist v 2.0
After posting the latest disturbing images from Marc Jacobs the other day and connecting it to the larger array of images in advertising in the ad-round up, I have found a few of the images from his 2005 ad campaign. The series of images below are not complete. They are the only 3 I have found (so far) in my mammoth private collection of ads over the last decade. The image in the middle is from the January 2005 issue of Vogue. I did not accurately label the other two images but they were also found in mainstream fashion magazines from the same time period.
What’s particularly interesting and disturbing about these images is how much they resemble the work of photographer Melanie Pullen. In 2005, I went to see Pullen’s exhibit High Fashion Crime Scenes at the ACE Gallery in Beverly Hills. Pullen recreated from files obtained from the Los Angeles and New York Police Department’s and various coroner’s offices, crimes that took place at the beginning of the last century. She recreated these crime scenes by outfitting models in high-fashion clothing (Prada and Gucci) and shoes (Jimmy Choos and Marc Jacobs, ironically). Her work is coupled with an artist’s statement that indicates her intention in critically examining the glamorization of violence and the distraction of that violence through the use of beautiful women in beautiful clothes. The fashion industry barrages us with seemingly normative images of violence against women in mainstream magazines advertising everything from clothing to perfume. These instances are exactly what Pullen is attempting to examine.
The difference between Jacobs and Pullen? Pullen’s work is accompanied with an artist’s statement and takes a critical eye at this rather gruesome trend and asks that we become aware of our tendency to focus on the beauty of the images while ignoring their brutality (they are images of actual crime scenes, after all). Jacobs’ work does not come with an artist’s statement. Instead, he is on the other side of the issue.
It’s amazing how you can just flip past the images, and not think much of them, but once it’s brought to your attention, you really begin to notice. This weekend, while flipping through some old magazines I came across an ad for Louis Vuitton that showed a girl lying alone in an awkward position in what looked to be a ditch. She’s got dirt all of her face, clothes, etc. and a Louis Vuitton bag at her side. I’m just shocked that these kinds of advertisements are deemed acceptable and printed all through the pages of magazines consumed by women. And the number of people involved in them – models, photographers, the designers themselves, PR people, editors, magazine publishers, the ad team at the magazines themselves, and not one person said “No, this is disgusting, and we will not produce and print images that glamorize victimization for selling handbags and shoes.”
Comment by Rachel — April 19, 2010 @ 11:19 am
[…] the institutional mindset that, for just one example, continues to believe that employing images of gruesome violence against women is the most effective way to sell clothes, shoes, cars, reality show […]
Pingback by WIMN’s Voices » “Advertising hasn’t changed” since “Mad Men” –Hank Wasiak at #140Conf — April 20, 2010 @ 12:59 pm
As a husband and a father adds like this are very disturbing. My daughter has not ever been allowed to purchase or subscribe to any of these mainstream teen / girl / women oriented magazines. I believe they’re horrible for her self image and don’t focus on what is truly important.
Thank you for bringing this out in the open.
Comment by Mike — April 25, 2010 @ 4:39 am
appalling,deeply offensive imagery. Makes me feel quite sick.
Comment by shirley — May 30, 2010 @ 8:46 am
I respectfully disagree with the assessment of Melanie Pullen’s photographs. Her “High Fashion Crime Scene” photographs are just as misogynist as those by Marc Jacobs. An artist’s statement can’t make-up for the message clearly represented by their images. Pullen is depicting young, beautiful, sexy women dressed in designer clothes as if they were the victims of murder or suicide. There is no critical commentary evident in the photographs. I’ve seen her work from this series and heard her present them at a photography conference. Nothing she said made me feel better about the images or made me believe she was a feminist. These photographs epitomize glamorized violence against women.
Comment by Jeanette — September 22, 2010 @ 2:16 pm
Todays society has learned to live and has gotten use to the advertisemtns for products such as clothing and accessories brands such as Marc Jacobs, Louis Vuitton, etc… In these ads most of the time it is not even noticeable to see what they are even trying to sell.These advertisements that these brand na are putting out into the world for every one to see are distgusting.
Comment by Joshua. S — October 22, 2010 @ 8:50 am
These images are horrific. I never really took notice of Marc Jacobs in specific…Our media conscioussness has to always be turned on!
Comment by Julia L. — April 21, 2011 @ 12:53 am
Marc jacob’s ads saddens me and sends a weak portrayal of women not owning themselves. Why do we look like we are victims and that we are often stranded alone? This another great reason why we should incorporate more movies, music, art, visual performances to empower women again.
Comment by melani dg — May 16, 2011 @ 3:15 pm
I am naturally uncomfortable and outraged when I see images of women in disturbing, violent situations. It’s even more upsetting when those images aren’t real, like in the case of the Marc Jacobs ads. By appearing in the mainstream media without any explanation, such images legitimize violent crimes against women. I was really disturbed by the recent billboards for American Horror Story in which a pregnant woman, clothed in a revealing red dress is doing a backbend while some guy in black latex body suit descends upon her. The image was alarming and subliminally suggested that it’s okay to victimize and prey on women. The fact that she was pregnant was even more disturbing to me. These Marc Jacobs images bring up the same disturbance I had when seeing the American Horror Story billboards.
Comment by Nilu V. — November 6, 2011 @ 1:24 pm
the images themselves are quite horrific, but the fact that they are in teen/women magazines and are being seen as normative is even more disturbing. Marc Jacobs is not the only one who portrays women like this, in fact there are a lot more who do and it saddens me that their depiction of violence against women is being glamorized and being profited of.
Comment by Jorge Garcia — November 22, 2011 @ 1:30 pm
These images are disturbing on so many levels. Marc Jacobs obviously felt it was acceptable to have ad campaigns such as these due to the mass media’s glamorization of violence against women. He took it to another level though by creating pictorials designed to shock so his product would sell … and it’s working because unfortunately he is quite successful. But who on earth is buying his products and have they seen his gruesome pictorials? I myself have not seen images such as these in any of the magazines I’ve had occasion to flip through, but if I had, I certainly would steer clear of anything Marc Jacobs. But Marc Jacobs does not stand alone – there are so many people just like him who will do anything necessary to make money. It should be a crime that this type of brutal depiction of violence against women is so casually allowed to taint the pages of mainstream magazines.
Comment by Willemina v. — January 30, 2012 @ 2:33 pm
Interesting, these pictures reminded me of the ongoing reality of sexual harassment of women. When I first opened this website, I thought that is a page reporting stolen girls, and dead buddies found. Just by looking at the pictures, one can argue that these are misogynistic pictures or artistic pictures. I once heard that there is a form of art that uses part of women’s body and degrade the rest of her body in the picture. Even if they are artistic pictures, they are not made to be published on magazines or for teens.
The pictures give a scary message to people. That yes, it is ok and it’s an art to do so.
Comment by MATAN P. — January 30, 2012 @ 4:16 pm
Marc Jacob’s ads are always interesting to me. It could be an art, and sexy but for me, it looks horrific ads.
Comment by Eun Hee Chung — February 4, 2012 @ 11:46 pm
Why is it that this guy is so fascinated with women being submissive, or seeing them hurt. I do not see how it can be artistic, there are other ways to portray women. Why doesn’t he start by putting women in strong positions showing women to be strong, and not being hung, or tied up. Is he sexist?
Comment by Payne T — February 5, 2012 @ 3:09 pm
After reading the prior article in which Marc Jacobs’ distasteful advertising was first revealed to me, I was outraged and disturbed at how the media and the public allow this to continue without much intervention or even a second thought. More people should be informed of the ways in which Marc Jacobs and his advertising are portraying women as objects and props to support the violent themes prevalent in these images, and he should be reprimanded for his work. If more women were aware of this, I’m sure they would have a problem with buying his clothes and, in turn, supporting his company and his work. On the other hand, Pullen’s work is very creative and insightful, creating a spin on the subject and further exposing the disgusting and disturbing aura left by Marc Jacob’s advertising.
Comment by Camille Yona — February 5, 2012 @ 7:13 pm
I don’t know if Pullen feels that because it is artist it shouldn’t be judged. However, to me it is still not acceptable that they put women violence as a part of ads or art work. I feel that it is really disturbing to hear that they use LA and NY Police Department Files for this pictures. No one wants to feel like they are looking at someone past incidents. Violence towards anyone is rather hurtful and I think its really disrespectful to feel like its okay to show it because it was reality to someone. They don’t want to re-live this events. And women in the present that are being abused also don’t want to look at them. It can make them feel like one day that can be themselves being seen in the picture/art work/ads.
Comment by Juliana C. — February 6, 2012 @ 1:00 pm
The continual glorification of crime against women and the victimization of women is not only indicative of the hypermasculine society we live in, but also indicative how desensitized corporations who make products for women are about the issues women have themselves. How does one rationalize selling a dress or a pair a shoes by displaying it on a bound and blindfolded female or on the lifeless limbs of women? “The dress was so fabulous that she felt victimized by it?” This kind of display needs to stop.
Comment by Taja Eddahbi — February 6, 2012 @ 1:08 pm
This is appalling. I have never seen these images before and I know I would have been shocked to see them in a magazine. I find this really disturbing. I really don’t even understand the point. These images are just trying to glorify violence and call it art. I don’t think this is art at all. This kind of stuff really needs to stop.
Comment by Jessica Seigel — April 1, 2012 @ 10:26 pm
At first point, I do like Pullen’s idea to allow people to see the other side of the spectrum. My question is has she done anything to contribute time or money to educate women, men, and children about domestic violence and abuse? It’s nice to make people aware of the potential, but it quite another to put her hand out when you see someone in danger.
Comment by Salina G — April 4, 2012 @ 10:52 pm
How does crime scene fit with fashion? How do they think this is okay to do? This is shocking how they contributed real crime scene with fashion. Crime scene shouldn’t be something to redo in another way, it should be discrete for those who lost love ones, and now there putting it out like its nothing. What is this world coming too? That girl on the shit blinded folded in a secluded room, its like she’s waiting to be abused or for torture, how is this right? Very disturbing, and young girls read and see these magazines.
Comment by Natali Fernandez — April 12, 2012 @ 4:52 pm
Wow. I am honestly amazed at how these models are being portrayed and we as a society eat it up. As I was glaring at these pictures I was trying to think if I have ever seen a male model portrayed in these manners and I can’t remember of any instances, maybe because I haven’t. When looking through a magazine and seeing these pictures I think most females do not see the hidden message but as we have learned it stays in their subconscious mind at how the women’s murders are glamourized. They paint a picture of how violence against women can be pretty and not so serious. I think corporations feel it is okay to put these up because no one really says anything and continue to buy into these images. If there was more hysteria and this problem was taken serious it would not continue to happen. It is a matter of showing people this is a problem and why.
Comment by Jessica N — April 17, 2012 @ 11:29 am
After seeing these images it just saddens me even more how these women are portrayed. I would not want to buy shoes that are being advertised with a woman hanging from the ceiling. I can’t believe they allowed this to be advertised. To me these ads say, even if you are caught dead, you will die wearing fashionable shoes or clothing. It gives people ideas. It is just shocking to see these adds.
Comment by Ana B — April 18, 2012 @ 6:59 am
It is sad to see how these women are being portrayed. i do not see them as models because they are representing the women of this society.Marc Jacobs should be reconsider the ads he is releasing. These pictures are a welcome for violence against women.The way i see it he is an advocate for women abuse. Malanie Pullen is no different. She might be saying that these ideas are no her own and just recreations but she is putting it forth to our society. She is promoting this kind of viloence against women. It is also reflecting the same ideas of Marc Jacobs ads. As we flip through magazines we may not pay much attention to these pictures but we are subconsiously taking them in. We are being programmed to think that this kind of action is acceptable.
Comment by Teresa H. — April 25, 2012 @ 2:32 pm
“Her work is coupled with an artist’s statement that indicates her intention in critically examining the glamorization of violence and the distraction of that violence through the use of beautiful women in beautiful clothes.”
This statement alone fully expresses what is wrong with these types of advertisement. In the Original ‘Marc Jacobs is a Misogynist”, i commented that even though these images could be disturbing for some, generally speaking, the population it targets, accepts it as a norm of society, and therefore it shouldn’t be considered a problem. However, after reading the quote stated above, i see understand that though these images dont necessarily mean to inflict harm, they do so in a subliminal matter. The images used in the advertisement, may indeed have a profound impact on the people who view them, as they can desensitize people’s notion of violence and perhaps worse, they can begin to relate ‘sexy’ with violence. In retrospect, my initial opinion on Marc Jacobs’s work was too passive and i now begin to realize what a profound impact these images can have on society as a whole. Additionally, seeing it compared to Pullen’s work, which serves to outline the our grotesque approval of this advertisement in prespective.
Comment by Elvis Rosales — April 26, 2012 @ 2:37 pm
These images are very disturbing and they make me sick, and to think someone in their right mind will think its fashion. Hearing someone actually reenacting a crime scene and call it fashion makes me disturbed. It’s not art, its violence, it’s not fashion it’s just plain out wrong. Death being glorified in women’s magazines and it’s so wrong on so many levels.
Comment by Erica — April 29, 2012 @ 2:45 pm
I understand it is the ads goal to get your attention, however it is also suppose to sale the product. When I see ads like those of Marc Jacob, I normally become disturbed because I do not understand how the image of a “dead woman” is suppose to make me buy the shoes or product. Marc Jacob needs to not assume these images are just images; images like these send messages that do not help society. These images glamorize rape or a dead body. It is like these images are telling women these shoes are worth dying for or being raped for. They are saying that you may go through this horrible event, but you will look good while going through it. It is not cute to be raped or victimized.
Comment by Justine B — April 29, 2012 @ 6:16 pm
I never would have noticed these pictures. Until they were brought to my attention for what they really represent. People should not be allowed to glamourize brutality. This invites people to commit violence against women. Rather than allowing people to view the images as acceptable, why dont we make them unacceptable. Why dont we as a society portray a way of life that does not involve violence against women. The people pushing these advertisments should really take another look before publishing them. Also- men obviously like viewing these type of images, if they did not then they would not be published. Why is this? Why does a submissive, hurt woman ignite a mans fantasy?
Comment by Heather Stevens — May 1, 2012 @ 11:13 am
These ads and pictures hurt everyone who views them, whether they know it or not. When an individual looks at these ads they see the perfume, high end shoes, dresses, jewelry, etc. and are reeled into buying them or fantasizing about having the products. These same individuals ignore the model who appears to be hurt, dead, victimized, etc. and don’t understand or realize there is a problem with this picture. They become more and more oblivious of the injured, deceased model and eventually internalize the photos as normal and acceptable. So they are not affected by the real images they see, and could care less if the model is victimized, all they care about is what they can gain from buying the products sold. When children look at these adds they dont understand that the ads and pictures are trying to sell products, all they see Is a women getting taken advantage of and being hurt. So why would we want to post these ads in magazines where there is no age restriction on who buys them, and online where we make death seem as a normal day of life.
Comment by Wesley L. — May 4, 2012 @ 12:40 am
I really like Pullen’s concept of glamorization of violence. It’s so true how designers cover up such disturbing images by implementing women in beautiful clothes. I never thought that an image like the ones above can be distracting the true violence of the image. In my opinion, when flipping in a magazine the reader knows that the advertisements are to illustrate new products. I do think we tend to ignore the scene in ads. Once the reader acknowledges the disturbance in the ad it becomes secondary. I say this because I remember seeing some of these ads by Marc Jacobs. In addition, not knowing the reason of Marc Jacobs concept I don’t view him as a misogynist. I feel that in the fashion industry to get people to look at your ads you must go to an extreme concept, even if it means showing women in such violence and disturbing ways. I don’t agree of it but in reality this is how items can be sold. The fashion industry and advertisers just have a sick way to reach to the public.
Comment by Elizabeth D. — May 4, 2012 @ 6:25 pm
Fashion I understand has to have a statement. But when the statement is suicide, pain, depression, or murder then what are we telling the consumer of such product? I recently saw an image of Lady Gaga with a gun that at the tip had lipstick. And if you google guns and models you’ll find some disturbing images. I get it controversy sells and pretty much many of these models are so thin they lucky to be alive. Marc Jacobs won’t be the last designer to depict women in submissive posses or dead. Fashion is an art form but let’s bring the art back in fashion and take out the brutality of it out!
Comment by Yadira DiSiena — May 6, 2012 @ 7:26 pm
I do not understand how eroticizing violence against women can be good publicity for any company. Actually, I do not see many fashion ads, but the ads posted here are completely shocking and disturbing to me. One, maybe two, of these ads I would have not viewed as violent. These are the top, two at the right, I just see a woman being lazy in bed and a woman after a party, drunk and cold. Possibly because such ads are so normative now or maybe my own personal viewpoint that my first thought is a healthy and safe woman posed that way. The more subtle ads, I feel, are equally dangerous in promoting violence. I wish I could have been taught to notice these misogynistic ads sooner, to recognize how these ads negatively affect women and particularly the men that may be influenced by them.
Comment by Jessica C — May 8, 2012 @ 6:35 am
I don’t really understand fashion designers with ads like these. If they wanted to be artists how come they don’t become photograheprs instead of clothing designers. I don’t see how these images makes people want to buy their clothing when their clothing isn’t even showcased in the ad. Some of the images above are disturbing, these pictures look like crime scene photos more than advertisements.
Comment by AL P — May 8, 2012 @ 10:32 am
These ads are really horrible. Any woman that would support his products or does support his products should think again. This is degrading, brutal, and it definitely belittles women. I thought that the part 1 of this blog was bizarre but this one just takes the cake. These pictures have nothing to do with fashion and the fact the people still support him and buy his products amazes me. I get an eerie feeling looking at these pictures. As I stated in the last blog, fashion is about expressing one’s self, but this exposure of women, showing them naked, dead, and blindfolded is not fashion by any means.
Comment by Chynnassa E — May 8, 2012 @ 5:07 pm
The pictures by Jacob and Pullen reinforce how sick and twisted our society really is. These pictures are only glamorizing violence and abuse. Artists should not be making violence a main theme in their art pieces because individuals all over the world subconsciously take in these images daily. After seeing these images, it is no wonder why some men and women find violence to be accepted and tolerated. Violence is not something to be taken lightly, especially when there are so many individuals, especially women, who die from being physically abused.
Comment by Julianne Insogna — May 21, 2012 @ 7:08 pm
I am glad this blatant sexist imagery has been brought to our attention. Clearly Marc Jacobs and his advertisers are attempting to push some sort of misogynistic agenda. In retrospect, it seems to me that portraying women in these ways is completely pointless and irrelevant to the advertisement. A lifeless girl cannot possibly be a marketable image for a piece of clothing that she is wearing. I am quite sure that if she had her eyes open and was not blindfolded, the product could still sell effectively. I think that the more we depict women in this way, the more they will be pressured by our society to adhere to these expectations. It is high time we take a close look at the way we advertise, and we should recognize that it is objects we are trying to sell, not the women who wear them.
Comment by Neda D. — May 26, 2012 @ 5:01 pm
All of the ads created by Marc Jacobs show dead women posing as objects to market his products. The relation of the picture to the product is unknown but what is known is that the woman is always shown as dead and disposable. This says a lot about our society’s respect for women (or lack there of). The artistic photographs by Pullen however are used to point out and highlight the messages sent by Jacobs in his ads. Her art has a message while Jacobs’s does not and is merely offensive and pointless.
Comment by Melody S. — May 28, 2012 @ 12:41 am
I am shocked that magazines and the media even let these things be shown to the public. These ads are gruesome, scary, and extremely misogynistic. Frankly, I don’t even know how they sell the product? The fact that a “dead” woman is marketing Jacobs’ products shows how society really sees women. Women are not seen as important and it’s utterly offensive in that he takes fascination in marketing dead women.
Comment by Yasmine T. — May 30, 2012 @ 2:12 pm
Looking through these pictures really disgust me but what disgusts me the most is the fact that if i did not take a woman studies course, i would never have realized what was going on in these pictures. that scares me the most because i would have absorbed the content in these pictures and it would be in my subconscious. i cannot believe that marc jacobs is a woman hater and sells his merchandise through dead woman. i am offended and i do not want to support him by buying his products!
Comment by Chantelle A — May 30, 2012 @ 10:53 pm
These images are very disturbing,it is so sad how something so real and horrible can be glamorized this way. Marc Jacobs is widely known all over the globe. And I, in fact like his clothing, but after watching these images I have lost a sense of admiration for this designer. These images at a glance seem normative, but if you actually see them, you’ll soon realize that this is wrong. What is this AD telling us? Has it really reached to this point, where crime scenes of women being kidnapped, tortured, left, and even dead be something that’s admirable, and worst of all OKAY. It is not okay! I don’t understand how people could work towards a project like this and not say anything. I get it- you are a designer and you want to stand out, and it is a very competitive industry, but when you do something like this, it creates YET another wound for women. It allows men to think it is okay to do this, and worst of all it devalues women. Like how a young girl said in Miss Representation “When is it enough?”
Comment by JasmineG — December 1, 2012 @ 12:29 pm
I never realized that Marc Jacobs portrayed women like this until I read this article. It is quite disturbing and I don’t understand why they would think that these images are acceptable. I definitely agree with the title of the article, that Marc Jacobs is a misogynist. He makes women look weak. It confirms the fact that we live in a patriarchal society. I don’t understand how images of violence against women are so common, however, we never see men portrayed like this. It definitely makes the problem of violence against women seem acceptable. I would think that such images would make someone NOT want to buy the products of Marc Jacobs because they are so disturbing. If I saw the products of Marc Jacobs being advertised like this, I definitely would stay away from buying them.
Comment by NatashaN — December 1, 2012 @ 1:37 pm
Without taking a course in women’s studies, I probably would never have come to realize the amount of violence that is occurring against women. These photographs by Marc Jacobs objectifies women and makes them look like the property of men. This is also confirming the fact that violence against women is common and more disturbingly acceptable. It is scary that women are being represented as worthless and it is also scary to think that all these young girls are absorbing these images unconsciously. Its shocking that magazines allow for these types of images to be advertised.
Comment by Angella F — December 2, 2012 @ 10:50 pm
I have seen Marc Jacob ads such as these before in magazines and I always found them so disturbing. I really do not see any artistic taste in this. I see it and I cringe, I don’t even look at the product they are selling. What Pullen is doing with her photos is both very brave and creative. I feel like it is a more obvious statement than Marc Jacobs’, especially since it has an artist statement with each picture. It is scary to think that women’s violence is being promoted in fashion ads. These horrific and unfortunately too often incidences are already glorified in music and video games. I don’t understand why it has to be brought in to the fashion industry. The fashion industry already has too many problems with how they exploit women, so why is important to add violence to the mix? You would think photographers could think of something more beautifully artistic, instead of going so low as to use violence as an art.
Comment by SydneyO — December 4, 2012 @ 2:29 pm
Not until I took a Women Studies class that it was brought to my attention that most of the fashion advertisement in magazines depict women as objects. After doing an assignment that had to do with depicting the advertisements of a major fashion magazine it was revealed that most are contained with advertisements that show violence against women. I have had by my share of flipping through woman’s magazine while it is waiting at the doctor’s office or in line at the grocery stores but not till recently did I realize that all of the magazines contained ads objectifying woman’s body. Not only is this Marc Jacob advertisement clearly disturbing there are many other advertisements just like this that objectify women to a object. So all these girls/woman get the images of women being objectified and subconsciously subsumed to these things. Objectification of women leads to domestic violence and abusive relationships where women will stay in the relationship because they think it is there fault. Pullen had purpose with the art she did with the “intention in critically examining the glamorization of violence and the distraction of that violence through the use of beautiful women in beautiful clothes.†While Marc Jacobs campaign had no captions of their purpose other than copying Pullen’s artwork to sell their beautiful clothes on theses dead woman.
Comment by Tasnim D — December 4, 2012 @ 11:22 pm
Due to the fact that I was a marc jacobs fan a second ago I now am skeptical of whether or not to still buy his clothes. The ads that I just saw frustrated me because it depicts women as useless and obviously good for nothing since they are all dead. It also confuses me because even though it might make the clothes stand out im pretty sure I want to buy clothes that are on a live model rather than a dead one so I don’t know why he would do that in the first place. Did he do it intentionally? Well who wouldn’t know if they were putting dead women in magezines? Disturbing.
Comment by CharlleneA — December 5, 2012 @ 12:52 pm
This just furthers the desensitization of violence towards women. I’ve always found Marc Jacob’s ads distasteful and unappealing, but this furthers my dislike. Without my Women Studies class, though, I don’t think I would have taken as much notice to this violence in the advertisement world. Even though that artist put a disclaimer with her work, in my opinion it is still disrespectful. I’m sure that those poor women who were murdered wouldn’t appreciate the pictures of their dead bodies being turned into artwork. It’s just another way that women are objectified.
Comment by Taylor W — December 5, 2012 @ 10:29 pm
These pictures are very disturbing to me because they emphasize the fact that the negative and humiliating portrayal of women that dehumanizes them is accepted and is shown through magazine issues and covers. These ads that Marc Jacobs put out make women seem like objects and makes them look like they are worthless in society. These ads also show that violence against women is accepted and that it is not a rare things but rather a common thing because it is shown through covers and articles from Mac Jacobs. I lost respect for Marc Jacobs and his work because of this. Since I took women studies class, i was never aware of these issues, btut the class and the information has opened my eyes and now I am truly aware of this horific problem.
Comment by Edwin P — February 3, 2013 @ 12:49 pm
Throughout the nineteen years which I have been alive in this world, I have never seen such horrific advertisements, especially those of Marc Jacobs. After viewing these advertisement photos, I am honestly speechless, disgusted, and have no words to even describe how I am feeling at the moment. These pictures in the articles clearly show that Marc Jacobs is an extreme misogynist. I do not support him whatsoever and believe what he is doing with women is wrong. He makes women look weak, as if they are a tool. Unfortunatley, violence against women are so common in the media and the main way to sell products. It is so sad to see how women are “abused†in these pictures, and how men are never depicted this way.
Comment by Yasmin F — February 5, 2013 @ 3:32 pm
As they say, “time heals all†however, in the case of these advertisements time allows the viewer to become desensitized to the images that are seen in these monthly magazines. Being constantly introduced to these images monthly instead of every second allows the viewer to develop a sense of wonder every time they see these images while casually turning the page without realizing the impact that these photos have on their long-term subconscious state. Those who are introduced to the analysis process in regards to these marketing tactics are able to view these images in a different light than those who are ignorant of the fact that these images carry more than the handbags that are being sold. They bring about the ethos of the company and ultimately the misogynistic society that allows for this form of “art†to be commonplace and welcomed in an effort to sell these products to people. These pictures are an example of shock advertisement which aims to break through the typical barriers of advertisement in an effort to bring about the attention of these ads to separate themselves from other brands. However, it becomes seemingly harder to capture an independent creative force when others are depicting the same form of “art†in their works, as if women being violated constitutes such a response.
Comment by Darien a. — March 24, 2013 @ 10:11 pm
The most frightening thing about these ads isn’t the fact that it portrays women as victims of violence, nor that it sexualizes violence, but that many people will flip past these images without a second thought. Images such as these are (sadly) so commonplace, that they no longer evoke emotions of horror or distaste. As the poster above me stated, we as a society are steadily becoming desensitized to such images. Women portrayed as lifeless victims is a terrifying trend (Kanye West’s ‘Monster’ music video comes to mind), and there need to be other images that portray women as strong and alive to combat advertisements such as this.
Comment by Presley B — May 18, 2013 @ 8:00 pm
These images are horrifying and hard to look at longer than 2 seconds. What is more horrifying is the fact that we flip through pages of magazines looking at pictures like these with no understanding of the messages of misogyny they scream. These ads all have one theme in common, which is sexualizing and erotocizing rape, violence, murder, and assault. It makes me sick to my guts knowing that a woman suffocating in a barrel tossed in the woods somewhere is sexy. This is really crossing the lines and I hope Mr. Jacobs continues to receive criticism and negative feedback for this for the rest of his life. Truly disgusting, I am speechless.
Comment by RoxanaGM — May 24, 2013 @ 7:51 am
I cannot believe my eyes, who knew that the famous designer was a mysogonist. looking through these pictures has led me to despise and lose all of my respect for this famous purse, shoes, accessories, and clothes designer. I hope that more women and men will find out about these pictures and boycott all of his products. it is also ironic that he makes all of his money through women yet has no respect for them to a point where he shows pictures of their body parts in a degrading manner.
Comment by solo k — May 29, 2013 @ 6:58 pm
I do not know if I agree with this article. I agree that marc jacobs can be seen as a misogynist based on the images he releases of women to advertise his products, but it’s okay for Pullen to release images of brutual women because they are actual crime scenes? I’m confused. They both are sending messages, but because Pullen is an artist and aome take it as her proving a point, it’s okay to be put in front of the people’s face. Either way, I do not agree with these misogynist images and like I said I will not be buying any of Marc Jacibs items or have I in the past.
Comment by Ashley A — July 23, 2013 @ 9:26 pm
Before taking Women Studies, if I was looking at a magazine and i came across these images I wouldn’t even think twice about the meaning these images have. I would probably just flip to the next page, but now that I learned about this sort of thing in class it really attracts my attention because it forces me to ask the quest why. Why is there a woman hanging herself in an ad to sale clothes or why is there a woman in a barrel who seems to be dead just to sale shoe. If you ask me it seems very odd and uncalled for unless there’s another reason for the meaning behind the ads.
Comment by Qujuan F — July 24, 2013 @ 4:01 pm
I think that they are sending negative message out to the world and society. I don’t think just to advise something that it should be so negative and disrupted. I don’t think nothing is every that serious. If a young child wants that particular clothing I wouldn’t approve of it because its basically like your allowing that negative image to be okay. I do not and wont never support something like this in my life I Find that he just making it worse on his self
Comment by Alexis C — July 25, 2013 @ 8:08 am
Both Marc Jacobs’s and Melanie Pullen‘s images are definitely artistic, but equally disturbing in a larger context. Today’s obsession with sex, violence, and death is reflected in these photographs. They are somewhat magnetizing. From the artistic point of view, I think Melanie Pullen did an amazing job. Her photographs were beautifully crafted, although, personally, I would not use this type of photographs. I was very surprised by these images because the first thing I thought was not that these women were dead, but how beautifully the photographs were done. While Marc Jacobs, in my opinion, uses the image of death to promote his clothing line, Melanie, through her high-fashion crime scene photography, analyzes how today’s news reporting is “glamorized†and sensationalized and too often sends a wrong message, desensitizing viewers to the horror of the event. To prove her point, she uses high fashion clothes and high fashion models and actresses to distract from the real message. These photographs create a wrong reaction from the beginning: instead of noticing a dead girl and expressing sorrow, people tend to notice first only what is on surface.
Comment by Olga M — November 20, 2013 @ 9:38 pm
I agree that designers use beautiful models and clothing to distract from what the images are implying. I think it is interesting that Pullen brought attention to the theme of violence against women through her artwork. Truly, without these articles and the roundup of ads together I would have never thought Marc Jacobs to be a misogynist. At first glance of the ads, I would have thought that the creators of the ads were depicting the truth beyond violence against women and not promoting it. With that being said, that goes to show that without being conscious of the hidden agendas of advertisers can easily make a viewer believe the motive of the image to be otherwise.
Comment by Julissa C — November 23, 2013 @ 12:58 pm
Its sickening to me to see how Marc Jacob can be so disrespectful and portrays women as an object as oppose to humans that they are. What saddens me even more is that if most people would have seen this in a magazine wouldn’t have noticed its wrong doing. Although I do think that it is the peoples faults for not being as educated as they should be about the topic, I believe that its more of the education systems fault. They need to have more educating classes, articles, books on women studies.
Comment by Arian Z — November 26, 2013 @ 8:50 am
I’ve seen these. And more. I thought the same thing upon coming across them. These are crime-scene images. Marc Jacobs’s ads almost always (if not always) creep me out in a way that actually repels me from purchasing Marc Jacobs items. However, I simply thought I was being awkward because these ads are so commonly found, and not only by Marc Jacobs. It is comforting to know that this is not something that only I have noticed in my own mind, but is actually noticed, and called out by this blog post! It seems that pretty much any gruesome idea is now accepted by society if it is an arsty way to advertize. Advertizers are getting away with pretty much everything now. In effect, it is deteriorating our respectable notion of society.
Comment by Jacqueline C — December 2, 2013 @ 11:03 am
Since we are constantly being cultivated by images of sex and violence. We tend to not see how hyper sexualized and violent images have become. It’s now so common for us to see these kinds of images, now adds are trying to catch our attention with extreme depictions of women being killed, dead, or hung. In the end, these images are just a by-product of our society. Often women are subjugated to violence, abuse, and suicide. Whether through people the love, people they have been hurt by, or from themselves. The images depicted in the article are a mirroring example of what our culture values in women. Yes, even though these may be extreme depictions. In a larger context, this fits well in our strata of how we see women in our society today. As these images are meant to sell a product, it plays into the notion that women too are also disposable like the product.
Comment by Giovanni A — December 2, 2013 @ 11:36 pm
The fashion world is filled with disturbing images, and this ad is an example of a corrupt society we live in. I thought Marc Jacobs was a phenomenal fashion artist but I honestly feel sad because I found out from this ad that he’s a misogynist . Our society now looks like its totally fine to portray women as objects and victims of sexual violence. In our patriarchal world, the industry and media is constantly allowing people to devalue women by taking pictures of them been killed, raped, and abused. I wonder what Marc Jacobs really thinks of his work and that wat i really want to know. I know what side my opinion is on, but in the end, I want to know his purpose of this work.
Comment by Hiro K — December 4, 2013 @ 6:34 pm
I am shocked by my own desensitization to these advertisements. Before taking a Women’s Studies class I hadn’t thought much about the implications and messages that these kinds of images convey. I think that that is the essence of patriarchy. We all grow up within it and so many aspects of oppression become so normative that we don’t even see them. I look at these images with shock now but I admit with shame that I would have flicked through them in the past and, although noted them as provocative, not taken them that seriously. I had become used to fashion ads using “shock value” and therefore was somewhat desensitized to them. I had also become used to seeing women subordinated in the media. Melanie Pullen’s work highlights this. Violence against women is a massive issue that needs serious attention. To glamorize it in anyway (like in Marc Jacob’s ads) is to support it and only helps to condone it. It is not glamorous or fashionable; it is absolutely tragic. I write this as I acknowledge that I once posed for one of Melanie’s shoots. I used to work as a fashion model myself and I have to admit that I really didn’t think that deeply into it at the time. As a model I had become used to creating crazy images in the name of fashion. I understand Melanie’s goal now but I am not sure that women should ever be pictured in a glamorous way as victims of violence. I would also like to know how these images might have helped violence against women in any way. Otherwise I can’t really see how they are any different to Marc Jacob’s ads in the glamorization of violence.
Comment by Lucy T — May 29, 2014 @ 3:05 pm