Steven Meisel Image Banned In UK

An outburst of moral outrage has caused a Steven Meisel image of supermodel Sophie Dahl, wearing nothing but diamonds and shoes ? plus, one assumes, Opium perfume from Yves Saint Laurent ? to be banned from poster sites in the UK. The ad for the fragrance, which has appeared on billboards across Europe as well as in most of the world's leading fashion magazines, was unveiled to general acclaim in Paris last October. The sensual study showed Dahl lying on her back with her knees raised, her head reclined and her lips parted; her left hand covered the left breast, while the right breast was exposed.

It didn't appear on UK billboards at that time because officially all available sites were said to have been booked, but perhaps that was fortuitous, because when it finally was unveiled in December the reaction was almost immediate.

Along with one billboard in London being drenched in paint, the Advertising Standards Authority, which regulates the content of ads in the UK, was inundated with complaints, most of them alleging that the poster was offensive, degrading to women and unsuitable in a public place. In all, 730 complaints were received with more arriving by the day. ASA General Director Christopher Graham notes: "This was the most complained-about advertisement in the last five years. As a poster it clearly caused serious and widespread offence."

Yves Saint Laurent issued a statement arguing that the advertisement was created as "a work of art, in accordance with the image of Opium." The statement added, "It is purely meant to emphasize the spirit of Opium, which is a provocative and sensual fragrance ."

The high couture firm was ordered to withdraw its posters immediately and billboards were stripped of the image virtually overnight. On top of the money spent taking down the posters at such short notice, Yves Saint Laurent was further punished when the Committee of Advertising Practice ruled that for the next two years, all future posters for the Opium product would have be to approved before display.

-- Terry Hope

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