Risque celebrity and cult fashion photographer Terry Richardson, 52, who is most well known for his near to nude fashion feature work, as well as his assistance in the making of the music video version of ‘Wrecking Ball’ by Miley Cyrus, has now been revealed to have been banned by a top magazine publication agency. This has been exposed in a leaked email from media group Conde Nast International, which was further exposed by The Daily Telegraph, stating that the company would no longer be working with him.
In effect, Terry Richardson’s work has now been banned from GQ, Vogue, Teen Vogue, Allure, Glamour, Wired, Vanity Fair and a whole host of other publications that all fall under Conde Nast’s umbrella of magazine publications.
Presumably, Conde Nast have rolled out this Terry Richardson ban for fear of any more sexual harassment, sexual power abuse and scandalous sex allegations coming to light from various models who have worked with him in the past. Some of said models have seemingly spoken out to Conde Nast International about Terry Richardson’s behavior. The email from Conde Nast International by James Woolhouse told staff that any commissioned and unpublished work of Richardson’s should be “killed or substituted with other material”.
Paris Hilton, Nicky Hilton, and photographer Terry Richardson, pictured at an event together in 2014. Credit: WireImage
Over the weekend, a UK newspaper wondered how Richardson’s work could still be “feted by fashionistas” in the wake of the Harvey Weinstein scandal in Hollywood, so perhaps the fashion industry acted accordingly in order to preserve their clean image? Harvey Weinstein has also recently been revealed to have invested heavily in the fashion industry, as well as helped create the TV show Project Runway, predominately to court or groom young models.
James Woolhouse’s email to Conde Nast International’s bosses read: “I am writing to you on an important matter. Condé Nast would like to no longer work with the photographer Terry Richardson. Any shoots that have been commission[ed] or any shoots that have been completed but not yet published, should be killed and substituted with other material. Please could you confirm that this policy will be actioned in your market effective immediately. Thank you for your support in this matter.”
Terry Richardson has been accused during his career of sexually abusing models, an accusation which he has constantly denied. The questions of sexual misconduct have come up again with in regard to Mr. Richardson due to the Harvey Weinstein scandal, but there are no models coming out to claim that they have indeed been harassed or sexually assaulted in any way by Richardson, as of Tuesday.
Terry Richardson pictured with partner Alex Bolotow, and Carine Restoin-Roitfeld, former editor and chief of Vogue Paris. Credit: Shutterstock
Last Friday, Terry Richardson addressed allegations that were mounting last week in a blog post published by The Huffington Post, in which he wrote: “I collaborated with consenting adult women who were fully aware of the nature of the work, and as is typical with any project, everyone signed releases. I have never used an offer of work or a threat of rebuke to coerce someone into something that they did not want to do. I give everyone that I work with enough respect to view them as having ownership of their free will and making their decisions accordingly, and as such, it has been difficult to see myself as a target of revisionist history.”
i-D magazine editor, Caryn Franklyn, has said that Terry Richardson’s behaviour had become an “open secret” in the modelling industry. Does it come as any surprise to anyone at this stage, that this can go on in such places where there’s fashion photography, models, and big time exposure? Even though it’s not right, everything is unclear on the matter of Terry Richardson, and at this current stage, these are mere unexplored allegations.
Terry Richardson is the latest person to be accused in a full on witch hunt that’s sweeping across all forms of entertainment industries, from film, all the way to fashion. In recent days, Steven Seagal and Bill O’Reilly among others have also been accused, making one wonder if things like this could also spark false accusations of sexual harassment and other allegations without merit. Who knows? Regardless of the situation, Conde Nast International will not be publishing Terry Richardson’s work anymore.
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Featured Photo Credit: Huffington Post