FKA Twigs calls out ‘double standards’ after her Calvin Klein advert is banned
“I do not see the ‘stereotypical sexual object’ that they have labelled me," she said.
By Nick Reilly
FKA twigs has responded after a Calvin Klein poster featuring the singer was banned in the UK, with the ruling stating it was “likely to cause offence” and objectified women.
The recently unveiled poster, shows the singer and artist posing with a denim shirt draped over her shoulder, with the side of her buttocks and half of one breast exposed.
But the singer rejected the decision, which was made after the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) received just two complaints after the image, each of which argued that the singer had an “overly sexualised” portrayal and objectified women.
“I do not see the ‘stereotypical sexual object’ that they have labelled me. I see a beautiful strong woman of colour whose incredible body has overcome more pain than you can imagine,” she wrote on Instagram.
“In light of reviewing other campaigns past and current of this nature, I can’t help but feel there are some double standards here. so to be clear… I am proud of my physicality and hold the art i create with my vessel to the standards of women like Josephine Baker, Eartha Kitt and Grace Jones who broke down barriers of what it looks like to be empowered and harness a unique embodied sensuality. thank you to CK and Mert and Marcus who gave me a space to express myself exactly how I wanted to – I will not have my narrative changed.”
In a statement via The Times, the ASA said: “We considered the image’s composition placed viewers’ focus on the model’s body rather than on the clothing being advertised,” the ruling said. “The ad used nudity and centred on FKA Twigs physical features rather than the clothing, to the extent that it presented her as a stereotypical sexual object.”
Others also pointed at a recent Calvin Klein advert which featured Jeremy Allen White, star of The Bear, posing topless. In contrast, that advert received little backlash.
“I feel like FKA Twigs has a point about the double standards in the ban of her Calvin Klein ad, given that the Jeremy Allen White ad has the go ahead. Let’s face it, nobody is actually looking at the clothes in either!,” wrote one Twitter user.