Wrangler Endorses Murder, Misogyny, Overconceptualized Bad Advertising
A commenter on Radar summed up the apparent strategy behind a new FFL Paris-created ad campaign for Wrangler, writing, "So let's connect the dots here - Wranglers are worn by cowboys. Cowboys like to shoot things. People who shoot things go hunting. People hunt animals. People are animals. Therefore, we shall all wear Wranglers and go headhunting."
With the tagline "We Are Animals," the campaign's images, shot by the oh so uber-hip photographer Ryan McGinley, depict women in the wild in various states of undress hunted, well, like animals. There's a video too.
Somehow, this high concept is supposed to sell jeans. Mostly, it's just pissing people off. In reality, it's just bad advertising that's trying to pass itself off as high art.
See all the "high art" here.
Comments
The overtly primal images with the canabalistic hunter theme depend the viewr accepting a "we’re human" excuse. The creators veiled (thinly*cough*) hatred of woman attempts by turning the sick theme into a coy,artistic ad celebrating self-realization, instead of the in your face morally contradictory female hating serial murderer homage it actually is (imho).
Ads like this crapola and cable shows such as MarlboroMen pretty much have a wide open door to swoop in and direct the conversation subconsciously anywhere they want because not a lot of people are even considering the smile death wears when people look the other way at truly sick shit.
Thanks for the post, Steve.
"Not a lot of people are even considering the smile death wears when people look the other way at truly sick shit."
Hey, that's kinda poetic. Good shit, Arthur.
My reaction to the video can best be summed up by the immortal words of Max the rabbit:
"Can't see a damn thing, Sam."
Yo wrangler peeps
>>
stand up and be heard from YO!
this shit will not fly!
Robin,Leigh, Kara, Vicky! Yo! we are all ears YO!
end this shit. be vocal YO!
http://www.lelandra.com/tarotbook/fool.htm
Who said those woman were pictured as dead? These are very nice ad spots. When will they run in New York.
The Wrangler Jeans Love Song*
My nostrils sniff the luxury:
Of flesh decaying, bowels torn
Of festive worms, like Venus, born
Of entrails foaming like the sea.
Yea, your buttocks now they're swan-soft,
and you sweat not;
And a strange desire begot
In me, to lick thy cold, damp brow;
To gnaw thy hollow cheeks,
To wallow in the bowels of death,
And rip thy belly, and fill full XXX.
The author hopes that Advertising Pathologists, for whose eyes alone this poem is intended will spare no precaution to prevent it falling into the wrong hands.
I love to see people wrapping the speech of "high concept" around such a low concept activity. High art? Who knows?
Every 2nd grader knows that it feels cool after a stunt to say "Made you look!"
..and now we've all gone so far as to talk about it, too. Nice riff on the Crowley thing, George.