Marc Jacobs: Not the Man He Used To Be
By Denise Grayson June 4, 2010
Marc Jacobs' latest ad. Photo: Juergen Teller
Last week the first ad for Marc Jacobs’ new fragrance for men ‘Bang’ was released – or unleashed you might say as it’s a wild one. The designer himself played muse for his long-time collaborator, photographer Juergen Teller. After they “first tried it with clothes” he found himself lying naked and oiled up on a sheet of mylar, tan legs splayed apart with an oversized bottle of his product far beyond adequate to hide his modesty. The expression on Jacobs’ face seals the sleazy deal – a slightly snarly grin that appears to whisper in a guttural tone “I’m so into this and you are, too. Ahhhhh…”
This isn’t the first time 47 year-old Jacobs has appeared sans clothes in a campaign for his own product. His tatooed and buff body was covered only by graffiti for the 2008 series of ads for Louis Vuitton’s Stephen Sprouse handbags, the general reaction being a mix of ‘Who knew he was hiding that‘ and ‘Put it away, Marc.’ And he also did it for charity, joining other derobed celebrities in support of the Cancer Awareness Campaign in 2008 by posing twice – once alone and once kneeling (forward) in front of his long-term business partner Robert Duffy, hands strategically placed. And it seems everywhere we look these days there’s a shirtless Jacobs showing the world one of the reasons his husband, Lorenzo Martone, is so committed.
Marc Jacobs in 2006. Photo: Style.com
It’s hard to believe that just three years ago the man behind three hugely successful global brands – his signature line, Marc by Marc Jacobs sister line and Louis Vuitton – was the nerd of the fashion industry, a shy man with shoulder-length, curly hair sometimes worn in a messy ponytail, and nondescript glasses. His uniform of a cashmere sweater over a button-down shirt with white sneakers made him look more university professor than top fashion designer. Then to everyone’s surprise, Jacobs appeared for his bow at his Fall 2007 mainline show in New York with his hair cropped in a neat, short style and specs ditched for contact lenses; the transformation from geek to chic had begun. Admirers loved the new clean and handsome look, befitting a man famous for making others look good. And at some point he most certainly found his way into the gym, got some diamond earrings and took a liking to kilts, thus completing the metamorphosis and rendering himself completely unrecognizable as the man we first knew as the man behind the Perry Ellis brand.
Aside from- or maybe thanks to – the shameless self promotion, superfluous oily skin, and product names that are far from cryptic, Jacobs’ new image is working wonders for his popularity. While he was certainly well known and respected in his previous incarnation – already hugely accomplished as creative director of three aforementioned brands – he has become a celebrity beyond his day job, the kind that is followed by the paparazzi and will be soon known, if not already, to tabloid readers who haven’t a clue what a Stam bag is.
However, papped photos that surfaced last December of the happy couple on the beach in St. Barts were somewhat dubious. They depict the duo frolicking in the sand wearing tiny swimming trunks and bizarrely, Jacobs doing muscleman and pin-up girl poses for Martone who was taking pictures ( bicep pumps and hands behind the head, elbows out). Maybe it’s not nice to smirk at what others do when they think they’re alone, but were they really unaware? It didn’t look that way and it’s a bit of a stretch to think the paparazzi would follow a designer and his husband to the Caribbean. I can’t imagine the selling price of the photos would cover their airfare.
Whatever we want to make of Marc Jacobs these days you can’t deny the man is feeling sexy. You just may need to learn to look away quickly – he’s got it and he’s flaunting it and he isn’t going to give it up any time soon. It’s now or never.
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Submitted on June 4, 2010 in Celebrity Fashion, Industry News, Who's Who.
Denise is a Canadian living in England who is fascinated by the fusing of fashion and art. Her obsession with the details and an insatiable urge to share beautiful discoveries drives her Paris-loving blog, www.TheSwelleLife.com, and recently she opened Swelle Boutique at www.swelleboutique.com which offers exclusive one-off and limited edition dresses and accessories.
Denise Grayson has contributed 59 articles to Models & Moguls.
