SHE SURE LOVES THOSE SOCKS

American Apparel advertisements are known for having photography with more of an artistic sense rather than the typical fashion photography you'd usually see while flipping through any magazine in particular. They'll have the models standing by random objects, bending in weird positions, and doing awkward things to grab the viewer's attention. But if you'd ask people what was the first thing they thought of when the advertisements came to mind, most would probably say that they are very, very provocative. Many of the ads containing acts of nudity some would say is borderline pornographic. Even though not much is revealed in the ads in mainstream magazines, the shocking ads can easily be come across while surfing the web on more independently owned sites or art magazines. They don't make it hard for the viewer to get what they want. But isn't that the company's motive? To somehow get out the word to the customer how daring they can get? To show customers how unique their clothes are to get them to purchase the material?

   The advertisement to your left is obviously one that would create desire for many people. It shows a beautiful young woman who is completely naked besides for her socks and underwear. It is commonly known throughout the world of marketing that sex sells. Our society loves scandalous and dramatic things to involve themselves with. We want to be brought away from the typical life we live. The woman in the advertisement is giving off this mysterious aura. The looks on her face is telling me that she is hiding some sort of guilty pleasure as she grips her knee-high socks. Her stomach and breasts are hidden, the message is hidden. It begs the viewer to venture on. In the bottom right corner of the ad, it says her name is Laura Pheonix. Actor, director, "look her up." Not only are they selling the socks, but her name and body as well. The three smaller pictures on the left show three different shots taken close up to her face. She is biting her lip, with her eyes closed, gasping for breath, etc. It is clear that she is involved in some sort of sexual activity and the socks are making the experience that much better.

   The advertisement says, "safe to say she loves her socks." which is clearly trying to get the viewer to say, "if I buy these socks, I'll have good sex too." Even though it sounds kind of ridiculous, people will often fall for it. American Apparel ads many of the time show the model wearing only one or two articles of clothing from the store, baring the rest of their body nude. Some ads showing a group of models where maybe even a few of them are completely naked. Many people probably wonder why they do this and why they don't dress the models in full outfit to show how the different articles of clothing can be mixed and match. This is their trademark. They want to boldly express one thing to show how amazing it is. They want to explain to the audience that their clothes are just that comfortable and unique. That you can just walk around in a pair of underwear, or socks, and not want to take them off. Even when you're having sex. The advertisement on your right is another example of one of their provocative ads. It shows a woman only in leggings, bent over, and covering her breasts with her hands. She could easily have face her back to the camera and turned her head but that's obviously not what they wanted.

   To sell sex and clothing combined is the company's motive and they'll get as risqué as they can to prove a point, right? It's been done for many other companies such Abercrombie & Fitch and it obviously works because they've been doing it for years and years. The reason they make ads that mainly "tease" the viewer are so that the viewer will buy the product and find out what will happen for themselves. It's the hidden message they leave up to the audience that drives them crazy. The funny things about these advertisements containing nudity are that these companies have become some of the most popular. Could this be a pattern or just purely coincidence?