Dolce and Gabbana - overtly sexist?

We live in a culture that has gone from sexual oppression and repression, to over-exposure to the point of desensitization within only 100 years time.  In a complicated western world complete with third wave, and post-feminism, the lines between pornography and many other media outlets (especially advertising) have become greatly blurred.  

Such is the case with the increasingly controversial advertising campaigns of the well-known fashion label, Dolce and Gabbana.

Dolce and Gabbana has been only been around since 1984*, and is already one of the most worn high-end clothing labels today.  D&G's ads can be seen in virtually almost every fashion magazine on the shelves, plus every issue of Vogue (the sort of king of the fashion magazine world).  People pay thousands of dollars for their clothing.  Its name has that kind of weight.

Now don't get me wrong, many companies use sex as a selling point in their advertising.  After all, it's easy to appeal to an irrational desire as strong as sexual desire.  Many companies also try to use controversy to "push the envelope," so to speak, in their advertising as a way to grab attention and generate buzz.  This is all fine and well to a certain extent, and sure, controversial advertising is always bound to offend someone one way or another.  But when does oversexualized, controversial advertising cross that line into blatant displays of sexism?

Here is probably the most infamous D&G ad, in that regard:

Of course, along with this ad came the two-sided argument of harm vs. harmlessness.  But there are a couple of important contextual elements to note.

For one, this ad was first released in the March 2007 issue of Esquire magazine.  In case you don't know what Esquire magazine is, it is a men's magazine that is published globally.

In addition to this, during the same time, Spain was experiencing a high rate of women targeted violence .

Both the Spanish and the Italian governments both demanded D&G pull the ads from their countries.  And that they did.

This next ad may look familiar from my last post:

When observing advertisements, we must look carefully and ask ourselves--what is this company trying to sell to us?  Who are they trying to sell to?  And what idea are they trying to sell us on?

If Dolce and Gabbana are trying to sell us on controversy, couldn't they do so in a million ways other than trying to sell rape and objectification of women?

More links on D&G ad controversy:
adpunch.org
Models and Moguls
Frisky Geek
Fashionist