I love inventive ad copy with a message, and I instantly became interested in the bigger picture story behind Equinox’s 2016 campaign after I saw this ↓
Model Lydia Hearst—daughter of Patty Hearst, is seen dining at a luxurious restaurant, decked out in formal wear and bathed in diamonds while breast feeding twins. It’s a remarkable visual, shot by famed fashion photog Steven Klein with wonderfully unspoken visuals. The hazy mood lighting, the grand paintings in the distance, the beef tartare adroitly seasoned. Also, I’m not sure if it was intentional or not, but I also clocked in on the fact that latched-twin-on-the left’s (her right) nose also looks like (**gasp**) a visible nipple.
The ad speaks volumes about privilege and excess, yet shines a very authentic light on the demands of motherhood, despite the extravagant stage setting. To me it reads as a provocative pro feminist statement. My internal monologue is screaming “You Go Girl” as I skim over the COMMIT TO SOMETHING tag line. I also love when an ad can court controversy by mindfully bringing an important issue to light, like public breast feeding. Effectiveness? Check!
Next, I randomly saw this ad↓
Actress Bianca VanDamme—daughter to Claude, is seen with a red feminist symbol painted on her chest and torso, fist in air, in a riotous not-gonna-take-it-anymore militant stance.
Again, I thought Equinox was promoting an unapologetic pro feminism narrative movement, and I wanted to see more!
Cue the record scratch.
Yeah, I was wrong. What I thought was a deliberate series of empowered out-of-the-box feminist scenes, turned out to be as random as the way I saw these ads roll out.
Upon further inspection, I saw that there was no such ‘movement’— the only connective tissue being a fascination with bare chests and a belief in Nordic sexy-as-hell Aliens?
Equinox, Like your tag line suggests, you had the chance to COMMIT TO SOMETHING?!
Instead, you fell for EVERYTHING, and stood for NOTHING!
Still, you got people opinion vomiting on the web and in that sense its an ad campaign win.
Here’s to the ideation of ALMOSTS…
R.I.P.
XOXO,
The Pop Culture Rainman™ 