Balenciaga designer talks ‘mistake,’ insists child porn Supreme Court case in photo was ‘coincidence’
Julia Johnson
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Balenciaga designer Demna, the creative director behind the controversial ad that features young children and props that many claimed were related to “BDSM,” apologized again in a new interview.
However, he maintains that the inclusion of particularly disturbing props, namely a Supreme Court case relating to child pornography, were simply present due to “coincidence.”
“That was my big mistake. I didn’t realize how inappropriate it would be to put these objects [in the image] and still have the kid in the middle,” Demna told Vogue in a recent interview.
“It unfortunately was the wrong idea and a bad decision from me,” he claimed.
“This was an error of judgment. I regret this a lot. We learned from this now and there are going to be closer and more attentive checks and validation steps applied before any image goes out,” Demna added. “For this I want to say I am sorry; I sincerely apologize for what happened and to anyone who has been hurt by it.”
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Despite expressing his regret for the images of children with BDSM-like props, he maintained that the inclusion of the 2008 United States v. Williams Supreme Court decision was “not intentional.” The decision ruled that a law prohibiting the pandering of child pornography was not overly broad or unconstitutional.
“I was like, everybody, my team, was shocked. I don’t know how they ended up there. They were not supposed to be there. I was completely stunned,” he said.
When Vogue pressed him on it, he said, “Intentional from who? From us? What I can definitely say is that it was not intentional by me or Balenciaga. If it was intentional by someone else, I don’t know.”
According to him, coincidence is “the only explanation that is plausible to me. That’s the only way I can explain it. Obviously, if you look for the dots, you can connect anything, but I don’t have any other explanation for it.”
Demna acknowledged that he is known for being somewhat provocative but noted that he wouldn’t do it in this way. “That was the most difficult thing for me personally: How could I not see [the problem]? Because it is so clear to me now that it was the wrong thing to do,” he explained.
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“Learning from the mistake also includes educating ourselves on this issue and contributing to the actual cause,” he said.
Last week, it was announced that Balenciaga and the Kering Foundation are partnering with the National Children’s Alliance for a three-year program. The program will focus on supporting the National Children Alliance Mental Health Institute to help children cope with trauma, educating the fashion house on “child protection and actions adults can take to promote the safety and well-being of children,” and raising awareness about child abuse and child protection.