Exclusive: More Models Come Forward With Allegations Against Fashion Photographer
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“I don’t like to exploit anybody. That’s not my bag. Everyone has fun on my shoots,” says fashion photographer Terry Richardson. But those who work with him continue to accuse him of sexual harassment, and they’ve told us their stories.
Last week, the Danish supermodel Rie Rasmussen confronted Richardson in Paris, and said he abuses his position of power within the industry to sexually harass young women with impunity. “They are too afraid to say no because their agency booked them on the job and are too young to stand up for themselves,” said Rasmussen. “I told him, ‘What you do is completely degrading to women. I hope you know you only fuck girls because you have a camera, lots of fashion contacts and get your pictures in Vogue.'”
Rather than defend himself, Richardson allegedly fled the scene, and instead called Rasmussen’s agency to complain about her.
Two days ago, a sometime model named Jamie Peck wrote of an experience she had on a shoot with Richardson six years ago. When she said she wanted to keep her underwear on because she was menstruating, Peck says Richardson asked her to take out her tampon so he could play with it, and make “tampon tea.” He insisted on being called “Uncle Terry,” and during their shoot, Richardson unexpectedly stripped naked.
“Before I could say ‘whoa, whoa, whoa!’ dude was wearing only his tattoos and waggling the biggest dick I’d ever seen dangerously close to my unclothed person (granted, I hadn’t seen very many yet).” In Peck’s words, Richardson eventually “maneuvered” her over to a couch in his studio, where he “strongly suggested I touch his terrifying penis.” When he ejaculated, one of his assistants gave Peck a towel.
Richardson also reportedly left his then-wife, former model Nikki Uberti, for Shalom Harlow when Uberti was diagnosed with breast cancer at age 29.
Following the publication of Peck’s allegations, other stories of Richardson’s questionable behavior at work poured forth. I heard from modeling agency bookers and former bookers, photographers (many of whom told me that they are disgusted by Richardson in part because by propagating the idea of the fashion photographer/predator, he makes their jobs harder), fashion writers, magazine editors, models of all descriptions, stylists, and others in the industry. Because of Terry Richardson’s extraordinary position of power, all of these people spoke to me anonymously, for fear of losing their own jobs or being blacklisted in an industry that hates to endure any overt challenge to its power structure.
One fashion insider says agencies “know full well Richardson’s predatory behavior,” but that he “is tolerated because the industry folk are just sheep. There are only a handful of photographers who have the power, a handful of editors who have the power, and a handful of clients who have the power. Everyone else just follows this small group of people.” In a multi-billion-dollar industry where the product is subject to a high level of uncertainty — will this be the look of the season or will that? Will this trend take off or will that one? — people tend to cluster around the handful of people who are powerful enough to actually influence outcomes. Because Richardson carries the dual stamp of editorial approval of Anna Wintour and her French counterpart Carine Roitfeld, and because he also shoots for behemoth commercial clients like H&M, his entrenchment in the fashion pantheon is virtually complete. And that, says the source, makes him practically untouchable. “Those people in power, the women, need to take their responsibility for what happens to the girls because by booking him, they are tacitly giving their approval that whatever he does is OK.”
Several people pointed out that while Richardson shoots frequently for major titles including American Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar, Vogue Paris, British Vogue, i-D, V, and GQ, he has one curious, and high-profile, exception to his editorial credits: W magazine, where Richardson’s services are apparently not in demand. Two current and former W staffers confirmed that Richardson has not worked with the magazine in a while; another individual thought the most recent instance of his work appearing in the magazine dated to a Mexico City-shot story, with model Esther de Jong, in the mid-1990s November, 1996 issue.
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