Photographer Misan Harriman, who regularly photographs the Sussexes, has spoken out against fashion house Balenciaga in a video shared on social media.
The Spanish fashion brand is facing backlash for a spring/summer 2023 shoot that features young children posing with teddy bears that appear to be wearing bondage gear. A separate photo on the Balenciaga website reportedly featured a court document pertaining to child pornography laws. Balenciaga has since pulled the ads, per ABC News.
“As a photographer that’s worked with many brands in the fashion industry, I’m utterly horrified,” Harriman says at the beginning of a black-and-white video he shared on Twitter. “And I’m angry. I know how many steps you go through as a photographer to get the client to approve images, I know how many adult eyes have to look at images for them to be printed, especially for a retail campaign or [if] you’re selling the product online,” he continued. “This gift shop shoot by Balenciaga is abhorrent. And those babies, those children that were not protected…The fashion industry needs to do something about this.”
Here’s the video, via Harriman’s Twitter:
Twitter content
This content can also be viewed on the site it originates from.
On Tuesday, November 23, Balenciaga released an apology via its Instagram Story:
“We sincerely apologize for any offense our holiday campaign may have caused. Our plush bear bags should not have been featured with children in this campaign. We have immediately removed the campaign from all platforms,” the statement said. “We apologize for displaying unsettling documents in our campaign. We take this matter very seriously and are taking legal action against the parties responsible for creating the set and including unapproved items for our spring 23 campaign photoshoot. We strongly condemn abuse of children in any form. We stand for children safety and well-being.”
Harriman is a renowned photographer who has worked with Meghan Markle and Prince Harry on several occasions, most recently photographing the couple during their visit to the UK earlier this year when the Duchess of Sussex spoke at the One Young World summit. He also attended the couple’s birthday party for their daughter, Lilibet Diana, where he photographed the one-year-old for the occasion.
