October 24, 2007
Seen on the Corner of Allen and Houston, Take Two-B
Last month, we mentioned that some Lower East Side and East Village residents were upset with the American Apparel billboard on Allen Street showing a topless woman's backside and legging-clad gams. Now GammaBlog took this picture of the now-defaced billboard.
Not only is it splashed with some neon green paint (le retour de The Splasher?), someone wrote, "Gee, I wonder why women get raped." GammaBlog believes that someone(s) "must have rappelled over the side to write this."
Back in March, the billboard was more of a leotard-and-knee high socks beaver shot.
Photograph by GammaBlog on Flickr
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Complaints from the transplanted Mid-Westerners in 3..2..1..
That's a great debate tactic: blame women for getting raped to win an argument!
How does someone tag up like that and not get caught? It must've taken him at least 20 minutes to write that whole thing.
There is not much apparent apparel in that shot.
Thanks Gothamist for running another picture of the greatest billboard on earth.
#2: who's blaming women? pretty sure the graffiti is blaming shady, objectifying advertising tactics.
i think they climbed up the scaffolding behind the ad and painted on the back of the "billboard" - which is actually made of fabric... seems pretty clever to me...
Maybe it was Robert Chambers?
totally awesome.
however, dov charney's a disgusting little sadist, he'll probably just keep the billboard up.
ell442: I think you're definitely right about how they did it. Check out the question mark between the model's legs -- it's backwards.
Whoops, never mind! I must be dyslexic or something.
Carry on!
the people who complain about this ad are the same type of people who go to all of the stupid burlesque events around time.
men don't rape women because of clothing ads. that comment is an insult to rape victims.
"stupid burlesque events around town"
"You said rape twice."
"I like rape."
Yeah... um... they "repelled" down the billboard. Who the fuck are these 'tards?! Even if he/she did do it on the front of the billboard, which he/she obviously didn't, there would not need to be any repelling involved. Do people really think that graff writers walk around with carabiners screaming "on belay! belay on!" at each other? Duh, derp? Sides of bridges get hit everyday without rockclimbing gear.
i betcha that's a guy in the picture anyways... Maxmilia Cordero, maybe?
it's great how a lil t&a can get americans all riled up. you sure love your violence but the minute some skin is shown it's the end of civilization. grow up.
Um. It's a a woman's nice ass in the billboard...not an excuse to rape someone.
Femi-nazis grow up.
Rbeshenk, your derisive comments will probably cause some poor mountain climber to be raped.
TK wins the comment award this round.
Ahh yeah! slease is sooo east coast!
18: No, billboards don't cause women to be raped. But billboards like this one certainly don't do anything to help a pervasive view of women as objects.
I knew there was a reason I don't buy things from American Apparel. This would be it.
The word is rappel.
The ad is repellent.
The graffiti's "artist's" take on the ad is intellectually repellent.
The subject of the ad is definitely not repellent.
Wow, that's hot! I wonder if this would get this much attention if the model was a 300 pound black woman instead.
Like the attempt but the text ruins it for me. Not accurate and pompous.
made in america - - -
I'd really be curious to know what, exactly, is so offensive about this ad. It's an ad for stockings that are supposed to make your bottom half look sexy.
Wow. That model must have a 5 foot vagina! Amazing!
I don't think the sign gives reason or justification for raping women BUT it does give some reason of thinking of women as only pieces of meat. Women today like to expose their breast and ass so that is what women think is sexy. The ad does nothing for me, seeing a women ass crack ain't nothing special. The ad plays of today's culture that less is sexy. I'm surprise that there is no big uproar with this ad and women. So I'm guessing women don't mind being seen and treated like meat products, just T&A.
They replaced the billboard this morning with a new one. The model is wearing slightly more this time around...
all women deserve to be raped. all. stupid whores.
UNITARDS ARE NOT IN.
i've never seen anyone wear one within the past ten years, and if i ever saw someone wearing one, i'd think they were a tard.
anyway, my point is...eww. and i agree with you, RoDogg. within the past 35-45 years in advertising, women appear to have more sexual freedom and expression, but they're still portrayed as the same submissive creatures they were (are?) expected to be.
I say let's all go down there with paint guns and teach American Apparel a lesson.
That ad was up there for quite a while before it was defaced. Personally, I can't stand that billboard -- they're so blatantly trying to get a reaction, and that bugs me. I don't mind sexy ads, as long as the women in them are not used disrespectfully, but these aren't even attractive. This one is just ugly. A skinny shapeless pair of legs in tights that you can see her crack through, no face, weird position - whatever she's doing doesn't make sense. How this company believes these ads will sell their products, I don't know. I wonder what kinds of ads he put up around other cities.
That's not a unitard.