Even when the famous fashion designer is on her yacht in the middle of the Mediterranean, she says she is too old to be revealing too much.
“When I’m not working, I’m on a boat. I’ll be around the Med,” she told The Cut. “I’m European, so I always used to be topless when I could afford to. You can only do that when you’re very young.”
When asked what the cut-off was, von Furstenberg replied “To be topless? Forty. Some people more, but after a while, no.”
The fashion mogul’s comments were in response to a question about Instagram’s strict policy on nudity, which the daughter of Bruce Willis and Demi Moore is targeting in her “free the nipple” campaign.
Scout Willis’ Instagram account was deleted due to “instances of abuse” in which she posted a photo of herself wearing a sheer top and another of a jacket she created featuring a photograph of two friends topless.
“My situation was in no way unique; women are regularly kicked off Instagram for posting photos with any portion of the areola exposed, while photos sans nipple – degrading as they might be – remain unchallenged”, Willis wrote on her blog.
“So I walked around New York topless and documented it on Twitter, pointing out that what is legal by New York state law is not allowed on Instagram.
“What @instagram won’t let you see #FreeTheNipple”. Photo: Twitter/@scout_willis
“What @instagram won’t let you see #FreeTheNipple”. Photo: Twitter/@scout_willis
“What @instagram won’t let you see #FreeTheNipple”. Photo: Twitter/@scout_willis
“What began as a challenge to Instagram and its prejudiced community guidelines became an opportunity for dialogue. Matters like the taboo of the nipple in the 21st century, public breastfeeding, slut shaming, fat shaming, breast cancer awareness, body positivity, gender inequality, and censorship have found their way into mainstream discussion.”
von Furstenberg’s comment has come as a surprise to some, considering the designer built a career on the back of the wrap dress, which “became a sartorial symbol of women’s sexual liberation,” wrote Vogue.
Portrait of Diane von Furstenberg in the 1970s.
Portrait of Diane von Furstenberg in the 1970s.
Portrait of Diane von Furstenberg in the 1970s.
They were “little dresses that were, you know, not for an old lady and not too expensive,” von Furstenberg told the magazine in 1976.
“Simplicity and sexiness, that’s what people want, at a price that’s not outrageous.”
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