Perversion, thy name is Terry Richardson. For those of you not familiar with names in the photography world, Richardson is a man known for basic, over sexed flash photography and sexual harassment. The man who refers to himself as “Uncle Terry” and has been quoted saying, “I was a shy kid, and now I’m this powerful guy with a boner, dominating all these girls,” has gotten numerous celebrities and models to strip down/pose lewdly for his camera, from Miley Cyrus to Kate Moss.
Sexual harassment accusations against Richardson can be dated all the way back to 2004, but he still gets high-profile jobs. Petitions to stop Richardson from working can easily be found on the internet and articles deeming him a “piece of sh**” are among many that pop up when you Google him. So why is he still getting jobs? Why do celebrities and companies continue to seek him out?
Ignorance must be bliss for all the people that continue to support him. But even so, some people are finally starting to come to their senses, including influential corporate giants. Vogue hasn’t hired him for a shoot since July 2010, while H&M has stated, “If these allegations are true, it’s totally unacceptable to us. Currently we’re not working with Terry Richardson.” Even some models have jumped in to add their two cents about Richardson, like Canadian supermodel Coco Rocha. After an uncomfortable shoot with Richardson, Rocha adamantly said she’d never model for him again.
Richardson has defended himself countless times, but with a reputation of lascivious photos, countless allegations against him and a female partner in crime who apparently ran damage control, how can anyone believe him? Unfortunately, fashion magazines will continue to pay for him to photograph their clients because he’ll get the girls in the poses that sell and his name brings attention — for better or worse.
