Tom Ford Is An “Equal Opportunity Objectifier”
In a recent interview with The Guardian, fashion designer Tom Ford admitted that when it comes to the naked body, he’s an “equal opportunity objectifier.”
The designer, who was the creative director at Gucci and YSL before starting his namesake label, made a name for himself with sexy clothes and racy, explicit ads that inspired shock, awe, and then purchasing. In 2003, one Gucci campaign featured a man knelt in front of a woman with a Gucci ‘G’ shaved into her pubic area; the 2000 Yves Saint Laurent Opium perfume ad starred a naked Sophie Dahl in the throes of ecstasy, and most recently, a penis pendant from his Tom Ford label sent the Internet into a tizzy. Everywhere he goes, sex follows, because in the end, sex sells! (Especially whatever kind of sex he’s selling.)
“I’ve been criticized for objectifying women,” Ford said, “I’m just as happy to objectify men. The thing is, you can’t show male nudity in our culture the way you can show female nudity.” He then added, “We’re very comfortable as a culture exploiting women, but not men.” His statement rings absolutely true, and it’s one of the things feminists have been trying to fight for decades. And while Ford did not come out and call himself a feminist, he does admit to always “thinking about feminism,” and cites inspiration from his mother, who was a “great feminist.”
Still, it has to be argued that Ford’s women, as overtly sexualized as they appear in images, are never wallflowers, never a passive sexual object. “My women are not sitting there waiting for someone, they’re taking charge,” he told the British paper. “Doesn’t matter whether they’re naked—they’re powerful, they’re smart, and you’re not going to get them if they don’t want you.” Even in the hyper-sexualized world of Tom Ford, “no means no,” and women are always in control. Who wouldn’t want to live in that world?
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