In September Marc Jacobs will release his very first ever men's fragrance, the suggestively named Bang, worldwide.
Much has been made of the scent's campaign since its recent launch. In it features a naked Jacobs wearing little more than body grease and a strategically placed flacon of perfume as he poses spread-eagle on a sheet of crumpled al-foil (no less). Sparking impassioned debate the image has drawn a divide amongst Marc Jacobs devotees. Is it cool, or just plain narcissistic, is the question.
Some say Jacobs has taken it too far this time, lamenting the more recent Jacobs (toned, tanned and tattooed) is not a pinch on the designer's former self (a tad paunchy, over-sized-sweater-dressed and adorable, if a bit self-conscience), bringing the future appeal of his label, famous for its cute, quirky designs, into question. "...this is too much," remarked Fashionista. "You may be gay, sexy, and a famous fashion designer, but you are not Tom Ford". "We miss your signature awkwardness and rejection of pure sex-appeal", they griped.
Meanwhile the campaign's main image, shot by German fashion photographer, Juergen Teller - he has been on hand to photograph numerous Marc Jacobs collections and fragrances, even going so far as to share a bed with Charlotte Rampling in one such advertisement - has been subject to comparisons between it and another image taken by Teller for Pop magazine in 2005 (according Fashion Copious), in which a model in a similar pose reclines on virtually the same metallic backdrop. Similarly comparisons can be made to Yves Saint Laurent’s fragrance campaign in which Yves himself appeared in the buff.
Despite the current controversy, and whether you like him or not, one can't deny Jacobs is a genius. So frankly, any suggestion he might experience a dip in popularity is a gross exaggeration. Regardless of who appears in his campaigns (Victoria Beckham, Cindy Sherman, Sophia Copella or Winona Ryder, among others) the images stick with you, they suck you in, they make you stop and think, and somehow encourage you to lust after - and/or go to great lengths to acquire - whatever is on display in them.
To conclude, Bang, by all accounts, was a very personal project for Jacobs, in which he wanted to create a fragrance that he himself would wear. It's for the "contemporary guy, who, even if he isn't young, has a younger spirit", noted Jacobs. Made of black, white and pink pepper, the heart is "enriched" with masculine woody notes, while the base includes elemi resin, aromatic benzoin, vetiver, white moss and patchouli. It will be available as an eau de toilette, an aftershave balm, a body and hair bath, as well as a stick deodorant.