Firstly I am not an advocate of fur (and therefore won’t be adding any links to this post from the brand). I kept this advert as a reference after I finished my graduate dissertation in 2005.
At the time I had been looking into erotic stereotypes, the origins and meanings of erotic symbols in art but not particularly in advertising.
Common themes are used by artists to portray sensual or sexual motives in such work, including fur and hair. Artworks I had noted at the time included ones by Helmut Newton, Meret Oppenheim and Tilman Riemenschneider (which are posted below).
The Sprung Fréres advert plays on exactly these notions to market their brand in this 1980’s/90’s campaign.
I found the ad surprising because of its erotic quality: not just the fetishization of their product as a marketing tool but also the intensity of the couples embrace,- her clenched fist and thrust back head all imply an intense sexual tryst beneath the sheath of her shared coat.
There are strong elements of power-play and domination apparent in the image and considering it was shot at a time when women were becoming more powerful in the work place (and better earners) I’m pretty sure the campaign made it to home base.
