Gigi Hadid Responds To Accusations Of 'Blackface' On Cover Of 'Vogue Italy'

Gigi Hadid has apologized for the backlash that her May cover of Vogue Italy has received after many fans perceived her to be in blackface for the shoot, which was shot by Steven Klein and featured her alongside male model Justin Martin. 

On Thursday afternoon (May 3), the model took to social channels to issue an apology for the debacle. "This is a photo of me returning home from shooting my Italian Vogue cover on April 3rd…you can see the level I had been bronzed to on set that day," the 23-year-old beauty queen captioned a shot of her leaving the set in April. "Please understand that my control of a shoot 1. is non existent in terms of creative direction. 2. ends completely when I leave set, and anything done to a photo in post if out of my control fully," she explained in defense of herself. "The bronzing and photoshop is a style that S. Klein has done for many years and I believe was what was expected from the shoot (to show me in a different way creatively), BUT, although I understand what Vogue Italia's intentions were, it was not executed correctly, and the concerns that have been brought up are valid."

Similarly, Vogue Italy has also responded to the controversy in a statement to TMZ through its parent company, Conde Nast International. "In our latest cover shoot by Steven Klein, the vision was to create a beachwear-themed story with a stylized bronzing effect," the note read. "We understand that the result has caused some debate with our readers, and we sincerely apologize if we have caused any offence."

Photo: Getty Images