Tom Ford: why don't you want to see male full-frontal? - StyleList

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Tom Ford: why don't you want to see male full-frontal?

by Josh Loposer (Subscribe to Josh Loposer's posts), Posted Jun 5th 2008 at 4:00PM
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Filed under: News

Tom Ford is certainly not the first designer to try to blur the line between porn and fashion advertising -- not by a long shot. But, unlike many others, Ford seems to think his scandalous ads filled with soft-core and Eyes Wide Shut-esque scenes are above reproach. To be specific, Ford feels that he's battling against an unfair double standard -- he says that when it comes to fashion photography, male nudity is getting the shaft.

Penises! There, I said it. Tom Ford wants to showcase the one-eyed trouser snake to help him sell suits, eyewear, and a bunch of other non-penis related fashion items. Ford's latest campaign features his raciest set of ads yet, partly because they feature full-frontal male nudity. Accompanying the new campaign, he penned an essay in this month's GQ Style where he outlined his passionate quest to force the public accept the presence of artfully-lit dongs in fashion advertising.

Tom Ford's Scandalous Ads (Not safe for the office)

(click thumbnails to view gallery)


A funny thing happened to his essay -- when he picked up a copy to read it -- GQ Style had placed blocks of text in front the penises in the accompanying photos! Ha! We have a couple of good ideas as to why male junk isn't popular in most advertising: not that many people want to see it.

There is a double standard at work here -- and it's that men want to see naked women, while women are not offended by the sight of female nudity. On the other hand, women don't seem to care nearly as much about glimpsing a dude's package, while many men are totally offended at the sight of male nudity. Case closed.

When you attempt to blur the line with fashion and porn, that means you're subject to the demand for porn -- which is almost completely male-dominated. Plus, controversy might be good for advertisers, but it's not always the best thing for magazines who depend on subscribers for a portion of their revenue.

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