Ray Fongs got pulled! I'm sure a bunch of Asian groups will be happy. The only thing that could have helped is if we got to release the shoe. Oh well. Sayonara to the Fongs.
Adidas pulls back sneaker with caricature
Controversy - The company reconsiders and stops sales of the shoe Asian American groups found offensive
Friday, April 28, 2006
HELEN JUNG
Adidas Group has reversed itself and agreed to immediately halt sales of a limited-edition sneaker that features a caricature some Asian American groups found offensive.
The Y1-Huf sneaker, designed by Barry McGee, a San Francisco graffiti artist, featured an Asian face with slanted eyes, buck teeth and a bowl haircut. The caricature is a design that McGee, who is half Asian, has used before and was meant as a representation of himself, he said in a statement released by Adidas.
The stereotypical image angered some who saw its use, divorced from the artist's context, as offensive. Adidas initially refused to stop sales of the $250 sneaker, defending the artist's work.
But after hearing complaints from several groups since the shoe went on sale April 1, the company changed its mind and said on Thursday that it will pull any remaining pairs, said Abby Guyer, a spokeswoman with Portland-based Adidas America, the North American headquarters for the German company.
"We're an inclusive brand and we felt like we needed to respond to that," she said. "We continue to stand by Barry's vision and by his creativity and by his partnership with Huf (a retailer) in San Francisco."
Most of the 1,000 sneakers that were for sale have probably been bought, she said. The company is assessing how many remain with the 12 retailers around the world selling the shoe.
She said Adidas' "apology is for the offense that was caused and for the unfortunate misinterpretation of our intentions but we can't apologize for the artwork that was created by an artist."
Portland-area groups representing Korean Americans, Japanese Americans, and Chinese Americans were preparing to send a joint letter to complain about the sneaker. But the news that Adidas would no longer sell the shoe satisfied their concerns, said Stephen Ying, president of the Chinese American Citizens Alliance in Portland.
Angie Chuang of The Oregonian contributed to this report.
Helen Jung: 503-294-7621; helenjung@news.oregonian.com; www.oregonlive.com/weblogs/playbooksandprofits
Adidas pulls back sneaker with caricature
Controversy - The company reconsiders and stops sales of the shoe Asian American groups found offensive
Friday, April 28, 2006
HELEN JUNG
Adidas Group has reversed itself and agreed to immediately halt sales of a limited-edition sneaker that features a caricature some Asian American groups found offensive.
The Y1-Huf sneaker, designed by Barry McGee, a San Francisco graffiti artist, featured an Asian face with slanted eyes, buck teeth and a bowl haircut. The caricature is a design that McGee, who is half Asian, has used before and was meant as a representation of himself, he said in a statement released by Adidas.
The stereotypical image angered some who saw its use, divorced from the artist's context, as offensive. Adidas initially refused to stop sales of the $250 sneaker, defending the artist's work.
But after hearing complaints from several groups since the shoe went on sale April 1, the company changed its mind and said on Thursday that it will pull any remaining pairs, said Abby Guyer, a spokeswoman with Portland-based Adidas America, the North American headquarters for the German company.
"We're an inclusive brand and we felt like we needed to respond to that," she said. "We continue to stand by Barry's vision and by his creativity and by his partnership with Huf (a retailer) in San Francisco."
Most of the 1,000 sneakers that were for sale have probably been bought, she said. The company is assessing how many remain with the 12 retailers around the world selling the shoe.
She said Adidas' "apology is for the offense that was caused and for the unfortunate misinterpretation of our intentions but we can't apologize for the artwork that was created by an artist."
Portland-area groups representing Korean Americans, Japanese Americans, and Chinese Americans were preparing to send a joint letter to complain about the sneaker. But the news that Adidas would no longer sell the shoe satisfied their concerns, said Stephen Ying, president of the Chinese American Citizens Alliance in Portland.
Angie Chuang of The Oregonian contributed to this report.
Helen Jung: 503-294-7621; helenjung@news.oregonian.com; www.oregonlive.com/weblogs/playbooksandprofits
posted by gr @ PERMLINK: 10:17 AM
3 Comments:
That's very sad and depressing to me. One, that these groups weren't able to see beyond what I think is their narrow field of vision and two, that adidas caved to pressure.
I wonder how Barry feels...
Adidas caved because they got what they wanted -- 1000 pairs for $250 a pop probably mostly sold (and more after the whole brou-ha-ha), notoriety as an "edgy" company willing to take chances, and then to some, company willing to own up to "mistake" and correct it...
Don't know much about Barry McGee and the premise of his work, but I think he'll be fine, unscathed by all this. It's his art that counts.
The cynical part of me agrees with what anonymous wrote in his first paragraph, especially knowing what some companies can be like. The hopefully naive part of me hopes that all was done with the best of intentions with no underlying agenda. Only the folks at Adidas know...
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