The Perverse Case of Terry Richardson–New York Magazine features photographer Terry Richardson on its latest cover. Richardson poses for an unassuming series of photos by Cass Bird. In the accompanying article, the magazine gets to the heart of the controversy that surrounds Richardson, posing the questions: ‘Is Terry Richardson an Artist or a Predator?’ Addressing controversial work of a sexual nature, Richardson explained that it’s always consensual, “It was always assistants, or other people around, or girls brought friends over to hang out. When I was taking those pictures..I was very, like, ‘Cool, sounds great, let’s do it, great, okay, sure, great, cool, if not, no problem, never do anything you don’t want to do, of course, I totally respect that.” However, the article weighs in on power dynamics. Seeing that Richardson is a top photographer that can guarantee a model work, are they really in a position to say no? An anonymous photography agent shares, “These girls are told by agents how important he is, and then they show up and it’s a bait and switch. This guy and his friends are literally like, ‘Grab my boner.’ Is this girl going to say no? And go back to the village?” Read more from the feature at NyMag.com.
