Fashion

Photographer Terry Richardson banned by top fashion magazines and brands amid sexual harassment allegations

#MeToo

25.10.2017

By Joan Kong

Photographer Terry Richardson banned by top fashion magazines and brands amid sexual harassment allegations

Called the “Harvey Weinstein of fashion”, celebrity fashion photographer Terry Richardson has been blacklisted from working with international bestselling magazines including all Condé Nast titles such as Vogue, GQ and Glamour, and fashion brands such as Valentino and Bulgari (that previously used him for their campaigns). Known for his signature jarring and highly sexualised shoots, aside from working with publications and fashion houses, he has also shot with A-listers like Rihanna, Beyoncé and Lady Gaga, not forgetting Miley Cyrus’ infamous Wrecking Ball music video in 2013. Although he has been accused of inappropriate sexual behaviors towards models during shoots since 2001, and many has regarded his conduct as “fashion world’s open secret”, Terry has previously denied all allegations made against him.

In a leaked email obtained by The Telegraph, Condé Nast’s executive vice president and COO James Woolhouse sent an internal email to the staff of Condé Nast International on Monday stating: “I am writing to you on an important matter. Condé Nast would like to no longer work with the photographer Terry Richardson. Any shoots that have been commission[ed] or any shoots that have been completed but not yet published, should be killed and substituted with other material. Please could you confirm that this policy will be actioned in your market effective immediately. Thank you for your support in this matter.”

Terry Richardson has also responded to the claims, with a statement released by a spokeswoman to The Telegraph yesterday saying: “He is an artist who has been known for his sexually explicit work so many of his professional interactions with subjects were sexual and explicit in nature but all of the subjects of his work participated consensually. Terry is disappointed to hear about this email especially because he has previously addressed these old stories.

While we ponder over why has it taken this long for people to actually take actions against these predators, many brave women have been coming forward to take a stand with a campaign titled #MeToo (a call to action by actress Alyssa Milano) that rallies cries against sexual harassment. The movement sees countless of women opening up on social media about the abuse that they have faced, especially by young budding models who opened our eyes to the dark side of the fashion industry.

To date, the #MeToo hashtag has garnered over 540,000 posts on Instagram and 1.7 million tweets on Twitter

SHARE THE STORY
Explore More