A Calvin Klein advertisement featuring the British singer FKA twigs has been banned by the UK’s Advertising Standards Authority, on the grounds that it presented her as “a stereotypical sexual object”.
The poster featured the singer with a shirt draped across her body, revealing part of one breast and the side of her buttocks, along with the caption “Calvins or nothing”.
Two people complained about the image, arguing it inappropriately sexualised her. The ASA agreed, saying in a statement: “The ad used nudity and centred on FKA twigs’ physical features rather than the clothing, to the extent that it presented her as a stereotypical sexual object”, and said the “image’s composition placed viewers’ focus on the model’s body rather than on the clothing being advertised”.
The ASA also described the advert as “irresponsible and likely to cause serious offence”. Their ruling states that the ad, which first appeared in April 2023, “must not appear again in the form complained of.”
The two complainants also objected to a pair of Calvin Klein adverts featuring the model Kendall Jenner, but the ASA deemed them acceptable, saying one of her holding her breasts was not done “in a manner that portrayed her as a sexual object”, and the other fell within the bounds of acceptable lingerie advertising.
Calvin Klein has defended the FKA twigs advert, saying: “The images were not vulgar and were of two confident and empowered women who had chosen to identify with the Calvin Klein brand, and the ads contained a progressive and enlightened message.” They argued the poses adopted by both her and Jenner were “natural and neutral”.
They also highlighted that FKA twigs and Jenner collaborated with the company and approved the images, and subsequently told interviewers “they felt a sense of empowerment and confidence from having participated”. Calvin Klein also highlighted that male models featured in the same campaign.
FKA twigs, who has frequently celebrated her sexuality and femininity in her music and live performance, has not commented on the ban.
Last month she gave an update on her next album, writing on Instagram that she had been making it “in cabs in berlin, huts in big sur, caves in ibiza, roads in hackney, i have written lyrics by lakes in prague and in the toilets of raves with a biro on the back of my hand”. It will be the follow-up to her 2022 mixtape Caprisongs, and her two studio albums, LP1 (2014) and Magdalene (2019).
