Balenciaga Issues Two Apologies Over Fashion Campaign Featuring Kids Holding Bears in Bondage

Balenciaga has issued an apology after outrage over their recent fashion campaign which featured young children next to collections of wine glasses, and holding on to bears in what appeared to be bondage items.

Fans criticized the fashion house after the new campaign surfaced this week, which was meant to be about “Toy Stories, an exploration of what people collect and receive as gifts.”

In its original press release, the company said that the line featured “dozens of new products ranging from homeware, petwear and scent, from everyday items to limited-edition collectibles and bespoke furniture.”

Now, the brand has released not just one, but two apologies.

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Taking to their Instagram Stories, the brand said that “we sincerely apologize for any offense our holiday campaign may have caused. Our plush bear bags should not have been featured with children in this campaign. We have immediately removed the campaign from all platforms.”

Following that, Balenciaga issued another one

“We apologize for displaying unsettling documents in our campaign. We take this matter very seriously and are taking legal action against the parties responsible for creating the set and including unapproved items for our Spring 23 campaign photoshoot,” the company said. “We strongly condemn abuse of children in any form. We stand for children safety and well-being.”

The photographer of the campaign, Gabriele Galimberti, also spoke out, telling CNN that he had no say in the concept of the campaign.

“As a photographer, I was only and solely requested to lit (sic) the given scene, and take the shots according to my signature style. As usual, the direction of the campaign and of the shooting are not on the hands of the photographer.”

He added: “I suspect that any person prone to pedophilia searches on the web and has unfortunately a too easy access to images completely different than mine, absolutely explicit in their awful content. Lynching like these are addressed against wrong targets, and distract from the real problem, and criminals.”

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