While the world of fashion usually offers a variety of popular culture and trends that appeal to all walks of life, there are often some controversial designs that get people talking too.
The knit jumper has been widely criticised. Photograph: Gucci
Although these aren’t always offensive - sometimes just a little outrageous - there have been some examples in the past which have become trending topics - and not for their bravery to differ from the mainstream.
We’re talking about the string of racially-offensive and generally politically incorrect moves that some firms made.
This week, Gucci have been slammed for an item which has been likened to ‘blackface’. The £689 jumper features a balaclava-style polo neck, which covers half of the face and has a cutout mouth with red lips.
Users of social media were quick to point out how the distasteful knit featured from the collection has been released during U.S Black History month.
Gucci have responded to the backlash, apologising for the offence caused and stating that they have discontinued the sweater and immediately removed it from sale.
The Italian fashion house aren’t the first big name in the industry that have not fully thought through some designs that could be considered racist and offensive. Last year, both Prada and Dolce & Gabbana came under fire when they found themselves in the centre of race-related rows.
In December last year, Prada were accused of being racially insensitive when products were displayed at a New York store which appeared to resemble monkeys with large red lips. The brand withdrew the products from the line, saying that they did not intend to offend anybody and that the fantasy charm products were “imaginary creatures not intended to have any reference to the real world and certainly not blackface.”
Dolce & Gabbana also made the news last year when they posted a video of a Chinese model using chopsticks to eat Italian food, on Chinese social media. The video was taken down and D&G later posted a statement to their followers - to which many people were left confused, questioning the authenticity.
It’s not just luxury fashion designers that have made huge mistakes with some of their products, though. Sadly, the ignorance to these real-world matters are also common amongst online and high-street fashion campaigns.
Many people will remember the major red flag that was pointed out last year, when H&M modelled a black child in a spell-out hoodie which read ‘coolest monkey in the jungle’.
There was a major uproar when the incident was pointed out - and the retailer withdrew the hoodie from sale. They said: "We are deeply sorry that the picture was taken, and we also regret the actual print. Therefore, we have not only removed the image from our channels, but also the garment from our product offering.”
Going back a little further to 2015, Kylie Jenner and Interview magazine were at the centre of controversy when she posed in a wheelchair for the cover of their 2015 Art issue.
In a statement to People, Interview defended their notion, saying that their intentions with the shoot were to ‘celebrate a variety of women who are both the creators and subjects of their artistic work’ and ‘create a powerful set of pictures that get people thinking about image and creative expression, including the set with the wheelchair’, and ‘certainly not to offend anyone’.
Questionable fashion items were also pointed by Tess Holliday, who brought a slogan sweatshirt by Revolve to the attention of social media for fat-shaming.
The sweater, which shamed plus-size women, was part of a collection of problematic garments, which featured quotes like ‘too boney to be boned’.
The firm responded to the uproar, telling People that the set intended to challenge the ‘normality’ of cyber-bullying, and that proceeds “were set to benefit ‘Girls Write Now,’ a charity focused on mentoring underserved young women and helping them find their voices and tell their stories through writing.”
They said: “The prematurely released images featured on Revolve.com was not only included without context of the overall campaign but regrettably featured one of the pieces on a model who’s size was not reflective of the piece’s commentary on body positivity.
“We at Revolve sincerely apologize to all those involved – particularly Lena, Emily, Cara, Suki and Paloma – our loyal customers, and the community as a whole for this error. The collection has been pulled. We are proud to donate $20,000 to ‘Girls Write Now’ in the hopes that those who need it can still benefit from what was to be a meaningful, insightful and impactful collaboration by LPA.”
While these big names in fashion are quick to apologise for the incidents, discontinue the products and take the criticism on board, it does beg the question, who is giving the OK for these items to be produced and go on sale?
Sadly, these major fashion blunders occur more than we would like to think - but hopefully they are a lesson to all labels to maybe check once, twice or one hundred times before releasing anything that may be perceived offensive.