Metal Nº 37

In the midst of the HIV epidemic, while thousands of people, especially men and gays, were dying from an unidentified disease, the world was devastated by images of emaciated bodies. A period of fear, stigmatisation and rampant homophobia in which the fashion world could only react by displaying athletic, sculptural and strong bodies. This Versace campaign, shot by Bruce Weber, encompassed the whole preoccupation of that time: models in erotic and homoerotic photos shot in black-and-white were reminiscent of harmless sexuality.