Set Design: "Are those?..." Muff Magazine have a quiet giggle about sexually charged advertising (NSFW)

Date
1 October 2013
It’s a kind-of-funny and actually-quite-scary universal truth that modern society has become so desensitised to the appropriation of sexuality to endorse products that we scarcely even notice the scantilly-clad women excitedly clutching utensils in homeware ads anymore, not to mention commercials about bare-chested blokes driving enormous cars which seem to run on testosterone instead of fuel. Having sat back and observed the same sexually-charged undertones in advertising in mainstream lesbian magazines, queer arts and culture publication Muff Magazine decided it was high time somebody spoke up about the massive vibrating elephant in the room.


The result? Creative director Bukanova and photographer Emma Ercolani teamed up to shoot Toy Story, an ironic take on this very idea, and a marvellous job they’ve done too! The shoot is a tongue in cheek parody of the eroticism which lies at every turn in contemporary culture, gently mocking the advertising industry without bringing it to its (carpet-burned) knees. Plus, it’s super funny. I’ll be damned if you can differentiate between the vibrator and the aubergine without a second glance.

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Muff Magazine: Toy Story, photography by Emma Ercolani and set design and art direction by Bukanova

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Muff Magazine: Toy Story, photography by Emma Ercolani and set design and art direction by Bukanova

Above

Muff Magazine: Toy Story, photography by Emma Ercolani and set design and art direction by Bukanova

Above

Muff Magazine: Toy Story, photography by Emma Ercolani and set design and art direction by Bukanova

Above

Muff Magazine: Toy Story, photography by Emma Ercolani and set design and art direction by Bukanova

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About the Author

Maisie Skidmore

Maisie joined It’s Nice That fresh out of university in the summer of 2013 as an intern before joining full time as an Assistant Editor. Maisie left It’s Nice That in July 2015.

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