Testino was aggressive and flirtatious throughout, Mr. Then they got into a stalemate about whether the model needed to go fully nude for test pictures.Īfter Gucci hired Mr. Testino was in his room, where he opened the door in a loose robe, Mr. Fedele said - “whether it was a comment or a reach for the towel, and he definitely reached.” Testino were gauging which “moves” might work, Mr. The nude work bothered him less than what he believed were sexual come-ons. “All the agents knew that this was the thing to excel or advance your career.”
“If you wanted to work with Mario, you needed to do a nude shoot at the Chateau Marmont,” said Jason Fedele, who appeared in those campaigns. Two models have also complained about his behavior in the course of photographing Gucci campaigns in the ’90s. Known for his ebullience and charm, he is adored by celebrities, and has worked with such brands as Michael Kors, Burberry and Dolce & Gabbana. He recently photographed the February cover of Vogue, featuring Serena Williams and her daughter. He was also the man who immortalized the engagement of Prince William and Kate Middleton. When Madonna had her first daughter, the person who photographed her baby pictures for Vanity Fair was Mr. The photographer Terry Richardson, after being accused in one documentary of sexual assault of female models, continued to work for major fashion brands until r eporting on the producer Harvey Weinstein changed the landscape. Agents accused of raping young models in their charge continued to work. Regular revelations of abuse of female models - as far back as a “60 Minutes” investigation of modeling agencies in Paris in 1988 - faded away. From agents to stylists to fashion brands, the system has traditionally seemed more invested in preserving its image of perfection and glamour than in recognizing its bad actors. “It was general practice to give a model a heads-up about a specific photographer who we knew had a certain reputation,” said Gene Kogan of his time working as an agent at Next Management between 19.īut, he said, “If you said you were not going to work with someone like Bruce Weber or Mario Testino, you might as well just pack it in and go work in another industry.”Īs in Hollywood, allegations of harassment and assault have been aired periodically over the decades with little lasting effect. Male models are “the least respected and most disposable,” said the former model Trish Goff. In fashion, young men are particularly vulnerable to exploitation. Testino, challenged the characters and credibility of people who complained of harassment, and also wrote that it had spoken to several former employees who were “shocked by the allegations” and that those employees “could not confirm any of the claims.” Lavely & Singer, a law firm that represents Mr.
Weber said in a statement from his lawyer. “I’m completely shocked and saddened by the outrageous claims being made against me, which I absolutely deny,” Mr. Representatives for both photographers said they were dismayed and surprised by the allegations. In accounts going back to the mid-1990s, 13 male assistants and models who have worked with the photographer Mario Testino, a favorite of the English royal family and Vogue, told The Times that he subjected them to sexual advances that in some cases included groping and masturbation. “We never had sex or anything, but a lot of things happened. “I remember him putting his fingers in my mouth, and him grabbing my privates,” said the model Robyn Sinclair. Weber, moving their hands wherever they felt their “energy.” Often, Mr. Models were asked to breathe and to touch both themselves and Mr. Weber in which he asked them to undress and led them through breathing and “energy” exercises. The men recalled, with remarkable consistency, private sessions with Mr. The experience, once seen as the price models had to pay for their careers, is now being called something else: abuse of power and sexual harassment.įifteen current and former male models who worked with Bruce Weber, whose racy advertisements for companies like Calvin Klein and Abercrombie & Fitch helped turn him into one of the foremost commercial and fine art photographers, have described to The New York Times a pattern of what they said was unnecessary nudity and coercive sexual behavior, often during photo shoots. This has allowed prominent photographers to cross the line with impunity for decades, sexually exploiting models and assistants. In the industry, boundaries between the acceptable and the unacceptable treatment of models have been etched in shades of gray. The job requirements often include nudity and feigning seduction provocation is a lever for sales. For a fashion model, success is the ability to incite desire.
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