France’s Advertising Watchdog Asks Saint Laurent to Modify ‘Degrading’ Ads

PHOTO FAUX PAS: France’s advertising watchdog has asked Saint Laurent to modify visuals from its spring advertising campaign after receiving a number of complaints that they feature allegedly “degrading” images of women. The Autorité de Régulation Professionnelle de la Publicité, or ARPP, has received around 70 complaints since last Friday about images from the Kering-owned brand’s spring campaign, according to ARPP general manager Stéphane Martin. The two targeted ads, for Anthony Vaccarello’s debut collection for the label, feature models in fishnet tights and high-heel roller-skates, legs apart, including one leaning over a stool in a suggestive position. The campaign currently appears on billboards around France, mainly in Paris, and was published in certain magazines over the weekend. Complaints include that the images are “demeaning,” “an incitation to rape,” and “encouraging anorexia,” Martin told WWD. Representatives of Saint Laurent were not immediately available for comment. The ARPP’s jury will meet on Friday to discuss the complaints, but it has already asked Saint Laurent to cease distributing the offensive ads, Martin said. “We have alerted the advertiser, who is a member of ARPP, that these images do not conform with our code of conduct,” he said. “Respect for creative freedom is one thing, but there is also respect

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