Calvin Klein, the man, has a bone to pick with Calvin Klein, the brand. The designer who, Fashionista notes, hasn’t had complete creative control over the fashion house since 2002, spoke to students at the Savannah College of Art and Design last night. When asked by Fern Mallis about his feelings toward the two front-runners of the most recent My Calvin campaigns, he doled out praise for Justin Bieber but deployed curt indifference when it came to Kendall Jenner.
“When [I say] I like Justin Bieber in the Calvin Klein Underwear [campaign], it’s because I like him — not because he’s got millions of followers,” he told Mallis. “Now, models are paid for how many followers they have. They’re booked not because they represent the essence of the designer, which is what I tried to do — they’re booked because of how many followers they have online. I don’t think that, long-term, is going to work.”
“You know, I’m really not that familiar with it,” Klein, a disciple of Mariah Carey, explained when further prodded about Jenner’s involvement in the campaign. “I’m sure she’s a lovely young woman. It’s not the kind of thing I would have done, even today.”