Image By: University of Salford Press Office

In honor of New York Fashion week, BuzzFeed recently published a feature showcasing ten of the most controversial ads the industry has ever seen.

Instead of typical pictures of beautiful women and chiseled men, the images show models sprawled across a staircase in a pool of blood, floating face-down in water and even impaled on an iron fence.

The ads for a New Zealand boutique include a fitting logo: “Be caught dead in it.”

While the fashion industry isn’t exactly known for modest, tasteful ad campaigns (see Vogue’s Hurricane Sandy photo shoot), these specific images have sparked quite the debate. According to one reader of the BuzzFeed article:

“It’s just art, so I think it’s kinda cool.”

But others disagree, believing that the content of the image isn’t appropriate for what it’s trying to advertise:

“This isn’t a style of photography unless you’re referring to the macabre. In any case, the use of this ‘style’ to make a fashion statement is abhorrent.”

What do you think? Do the ads show the creativity of the photographers, or are they just plain inappropriate? Let us know in the comments below.

Joshua Budich ’00 is one of a small group of artists selected to create original screen prints inspired by the nine best picture nominees in this year’s Academy Awards. Budich, who created artwork based on the film Silver Linings Playbook, earned his BFA from UMBC in 2000, and currently works as an independent illustrator for a number of galleries and media-outlets around the globe. This work was commissioned by The Academy in conjunction with Gallery 1988.

See all of the artwork at the Oscars’ official website.

Read a Q&A with Budich at Retreiver Net.

The SCEQ (Student Course Evaluation Questionnaire) Profile report is now available in REX. Breadcrumbs are: Home >> Census Data > SCEQ. We will continue to have these reports available on the Institutional Research web site, umbc.edu/oir . If you have any questions  please contact Trina Payne,  kpayne@umbc.edu, 410-455-2111.

UMBC alumnus and staff member Kevin Gibbons-O’Neill ’86, economics, shared this photo of himself and his team of family and friends shortly after emerging from the cold waters of the Chesapeake Bay at this year’s Polar Bear Plunge.

Gibbons-O’Neill, who works in development for the Department of Athletics, is also a co-chair of UMBC’s annual Homecoming. Together, his team raised more than $2,000 for Special Olympics of Maryland.

Pictured in front: Bryce Gibbons-O’Neill. Middle (L-R): Rory Gibbons-O’Neill, Olivia McNulty, Brittan Gibbons-O’Neill, Keira McNulty, Cole McNulty. Back:  Kevin Gibbons-O’Neill ’86.

UMBC Alumni: Did you take the plunge this year? Send your photos and a caption to jogrady@umbc.edu, and we’ll post your accomplishment for the world to see!