(Molly Bruns, Headline USA) Business of Fashion magazine announced that it will be revoking an award it gave to luxury brand Balenciaga in response to a recent line of advertisements featuring young children with “BDSM-inspired products.”
“At BoF, we hold the safety of children in the highest regard,” Business of Fashion said in a statement.
“And like many, we have been seeking the truth about how children appeared with BDSM-inspired products in Balenciaga’s recent campaign images, which are wholly inconsistent with our values,” it continued. “As a result, we will not be presenting Demna with the Global VOICES Award this year.”
The statement concludes with an invitation for Balenciaga officials to speak on the issue, which the company declined.
According to the Daily Wire, Balenciaga has been in hot water since the release of the ads, which showed child models posing with teddy bear handbags dressed in bondage gear.
the brand "Balenciaga" just did a uh….. interesting… photoshoot for their new products recently which included a very purposely poorly hidden court document about 'virtual child porn'
normal stuff pic.twitter.com/zjMN5WhZ0s
— shoe (@shoe0nhead) November 21, 2022
The discovery led some to uncover other examples in which the company’s ad campaigns appeared to endorse child exploitation.
A promotional picture of a bag that Balenciaga is selling in collaboration with Adidas selling even featured a legal document from United States v. Williams, a 2008 court case that addressed the issue of child pornography in advertising.
The Big Short of this Balenciaga scandal is going to be if Adidas manages to get out without people realizing the image containing child porn papers was a Balenciaga x Adidas collab, completely separate from the BDSM Gremlin Clutch photos.#BoycottBalenciaga pic.twitter.com/FE6EGjLdiG
— Hoop (@xhoop) November 23, 2022
The fashion brand insisted that the papers were props provided by a third party who happened to be using them in the filming of a TV show.
The company released an apology via Instagram, claiming to “strongly condemn child abuse” and promising that the incident will be investigated.
Balenciaga is also suing the producers of the ad campaign, including in-house stylist Lotta Volkova, who consistently posts disturbing, satanic images of children in distress and teddy bears in bondage.
T/W: These are shocking posts from Balenciagas stylist Lotta Volkova who has a sick obsession with torture, satan & child Mutilation
These pics are beyond shocking but there are far worse on her Instagram which I won’t share
Notice a common theme with the brand now? #balenciaga pic.twitter.com/Wet0kKf5p8
— Oli London (@OliLondonTV) November 27, 2022
Volkova’s social media is now private.
Initially, Balenciaga pawned the controversy off on the photographers. However, it is clear that Volkova—who is known known for her horrific, demonic aesthetic—has a long working relationship with the head of the company and is likely behind this.
The media’s response to the initial advertisement and subsequent apology is mixed.
Kim Kardashian, who wears Balenciaga on a consistent basis, made a statement saying she is “reevaluating” her relationship with the brand in an attempt to distance herself from the controversy.
I have been quiet for the past few days, not because I haven’t been disgusted and outraged by the recent Balenciaga campaigns, but because I wanted an opportunity to speak to their team to understand for myself how this could have happened.
— Kim Kardashian (@KimKardashian) November 27, 2022
The women of The View were unable to condemn the advertisements altogether, instead calling it a “misstep” and “distasteful,” making it clear that they care less about the children and more about the inconvenience this causes them and their agenda.
The best The View could muster in response to Balenciaga’s insane pedo ad was, “Wow, this is playing right into the Alt-Rights pocket.” Literal Goblin women. pic.twitter.com/tU3bAmemCr
— The Middle-earth Mixer (@MiddleearthMixr) November 28, 2022
