In case you missed it, Bottega Veneta’s Pre-Spring 2024 campaign stars rapper A$AP Rocky and Kendall Jenner, featuring photos that were taken by actual paparazzi. The shots were sourced from image wires like Getty and Backgrid, lensed by photographers who famously sell them to tabloids and other media outlets.
LOOK: A$AP Rocky and Kendall Jenner's Paparazzi Pics for Bottega Veneta
In the paparazzi snaps, A$AP Rocky and Kendall are dressed, of course, in head-to-toe Bottega Veneta while going about their mundane—at least, for celebrities—life around town. Rocky is on a sweatless jog with perfectly coiffed hair in all-gray sweats. Kendall is walking her Dobermann along the streets of Los Angeles.
Mind you, this isn’t the first time paparazzi-style photos were used for designer campaigns. There’s that not-so-faint memory of Kim Kardashian walking around in complete Yeezy outfits. Photogs would follow her around as they always do and the images eventually became part of her then-husband Kanye West’s brand’s promos. Also in 2018, Balenciaga ran a pap-inspired campaign where the models used the logo-prominent bags to “shield” themselves from the cameras.
While Bottega’s concept isn’t entirely new, it’s still a fresh and genius subversion of the cons of being famous. The oxymoronic concept of celebrity mundanity—in this case, doing everyday things but garbed in exclusive designer clothing—is explored, cyclically monetized, and meta-weaponized through the literal lens of the celebrity’s natural frenemy: the paparazzi.
In this day and age, when private lives are up for public consumption, celebrity and mundanity have also become contradictory. After all, the everyday person doesn’t have camera flashes following them on their way to dinner. No actor, musician, or supermodel can live a truly simple life when they’re always under the spotlight, even in their day-to-day tasks.
That’s a point Rocky himself brings up in his caption for the campaign, saying that he and the “creative minds” at Bottega thought to make the most of “photos taken by candid photographers while [he does his] everyday thing.”
And when you think about it, everyone involved in the campaign benefitted from each other. The paparazzi got paid by Getty and Backgrid for taking the photos of the celebs. Getty and Backgrid got paid by Bottega for using their photos. Rocky and Kendall got paid by Bottega for being the models. And of course, consumers will want to have the Bottega that the models are wearing.
That’s why it’s genius that A$AP Rocky collaborated with Bottega to use paparazzi pics. They’re gonna make money off of his photos, anyway. He might as well make money off of them, too. It’s an Inception-like middle finger to the photogs who stalk their every move as if they were prey.
The self-awareness of it all and its weaponization (i.e. monetization) is almost like a caricature of the celebrity-centric world we live in—and also, of course, how it’s deeply tied to fashion. Isn’t that why they got reality-show-star-turned-model Kendall in the first place?
Hey, Preview readers! Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, Tiktok, and Twitter to stay up to speed on all things trendy and creative. We’ll curate the most stylish feed for you!
