Kate Upton Does Muse
February 26, 2012 in Kate Upton by Versus
Sports Illustrated’s top bikini babe this year doesn’t limit herself to looking picture-perfect in swimwear and lingerie – here she is in the latest issue of Muse Magazine, looking glamorously retro in various seductive shots.
How do you like Kate in this spread?
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She’s 19. This is weird.
Agreed. She is very young to be so exposed like this. When I was 19, I was still a kid, definitely not a woman.
I agree, though I feel she looks like she is 30 or something. It just feels uncomfortable to look at her like this, mostly because I am the same age as her, It just feels wrong, she is just a teenager, but she looks so much older. Jeez, I really can’t make up my mind about this girl.
And a marilyn-shoot? How original.
I think she is the most beautiful thing I have ever seen, her body is flawless and I would pay a million dollars to have sex with her.
She’s 19?! What the… I seriously though she was nearing her 30′s. I’m not talking about just these pictures either.
she doesnt have the right bone structure to pull off old hollywood
when i first saw her she reminded me of britney spears when she was young. Cute face with big breasts but not exactly a world class beauty.
I think you guys are a bit hypocritical. If it was Candice Swanepoel that were doing this shot at the same age you would just be drooling over her. I think it’s cause this has big boobs.
this has nothing to do with us having some kind of prejudice against her. I just don’t think she has that great a face. Sure it is cute and attractive but she looks like a cookie cutter blonde.
I love big breasts, hers are just not shaped that nice or that perky.
this photoshoot is not her thing.
I agree, this Is wrong on so many levels. She would look just as beautiful with a little more clothes on, but it may be due to the fact that she got into fame through swimwear modeling, so I don’t really blame her for taking even that off.
Oh and I wouldn’t be surprised if she was on the cover of playboy a few weeks from now.
Agreed! I don’t know if I would think like that as a 19 year old but now with 23 I find under twenties sooo young.
What in the fword. I frigging said the EXACT thing but every one disagreed with me and said it’s absolutely normal for a 19 year old. All you same people too. This proves y’all just jealous of mwa
Also I’m being sarcastic. But it is funny on the late Kate upton post literally almost everyone disagreed with me saying the age things and also that she’s perfect, gorgeous, etc. But scroll down and you’ll see that almost every chick on here is saying what I said that she’s plain and has a weird face. Sheesh I LOVE setting the standard. You’re all just followers! (again sarcasm) (it’s annoying that I have to point out sarcasm since girls are so super sensitive)
haha! Im sorry if i was one of those people who didnt agree on the post you’re talking about lol.
Youre just pulling the sarcasm card, you really feel like youre setting the standards.. poor you.
Anyways, Im glad Ive never agreed with you.
I think KAte Upton is gorgeous and shes 18+ which makes her an adult and she is free to show or cover her gorgeous bod
@Zalla, she is 18, but the problem here is that she’s setting a precedent for what’s acceptable to be sexualized by society. In my opinion, there’s not a huge difference between a 17 year old and an 18 year old. It’s often hard to tell. So this basically tells men to lust after girls who LOOK like they are 18 (regardless of if they actually are). To me, the cover girl should be someone who is at least 21.
well i sexualize 18 year old men, and I like to see their fresh bodies celebrated, so i’m not going to beg society to restrict erotic art to a not that meaningful number like 21. My only rule would be “the objectified person must be ok with that and must really have a developed and adult-like free will”…so that really varies from person to person. I don’t have any problem with 20 year old women/men posing sexy, the real problem, I think, is that 40 year beauties aren’t that much celebrated because of photoshop/surgery obsession… and this mostly goes for women, since George Clooney still makes it. Once again, the problem is lacking of diversity and brainwash effect. Fighting against it would be a much more complex problem… and I believe if women could stop obssesing with youth they really would change the world.
its not setting a precedent- that word pre supposes that teenagers have not previously been sexualised. On the contrary, they have always been considered sexual. We can change the age to 21, but then whats the difference between a 22 yo and a 20yo? Not much, so we come back to the same issue. Anyone close to the age of consent, whatever that age is, could raise concern and we could end up pushing the age back and back. Our frontal cortexes don’t fully develop til we are 25 after all. I would also add that she is not celebrating a pre-pubescent aesthetic, I wouldn’t know to look at her that she was 19. I’d guess easily in her early twenties.
I’m not a fan of this kind of shoot, if I’m honest I wouldn’t even say I approve of pornography but I can’t legislate the world according to my own tastes. There comes a point where you just have to respect other peoples views. She can vote, marry, raise a family, have a sex change, in the grand scheme of things taking your clothes of isn’t the end of the world. At worst she’ll look back and cringe.
Well ary, you are in the minority then. Most women who are older don’t sexualize 18 year old boys, unless they are roughly their age. For example, I don’t see 40 year old women lusting after Justin Bieber, but you should see the random middle aged guys drooling over Selena Gomez.
Amazon, I do believe 21 is a big step from 19. Sure, they could be confused with 22, 20, 19, 18 … but I don’t think they’d look 16. It’s all about setting a margin for error in age assumption because there’s less chance of jailbait being lusted after or idealized if a 21 year old is being promoted.
Agree so much. She’s only a bit older than me and it just makes me uncomfortable that she’s posing completely topless on a magazine cover. The setting is also very mature, unlike SI which was more fun (still don’t approve of her being the cover girl though). I can understand girls of this age modeling PINK lingerie for VS, but I really dislike when someone who turned legal not too long ago is promoted as the epitome of sexiness and an object of lust. It’s basically telling random middle aged men it’s perfectly acceptable by society to lust after teenagers, and I think that’s wrong because the line is pretty blurry between 16, 17, 18, 19 …
Mel, I agree exactly. I did write a reply however when I was off in rant mode I forgot to put my name and email address in so my whole comment was deleted =o(. I was just agreein with you anyway. It’ wrong and not OK to sexualise children…even if they are older children.
Although I agree with you, our culture has always sexualized teenage girls. It’s everywhere. To many men, if a girl has gone through puberty, she’s fair game. It’s disturbing but it’s nothing new.
To be honest, it’s still much better these days than it was before, we don’t even have to go back a century.. basically as soon as a woman got her period, many times even before, she was married off. I don’t agree with sexualizing children, however between the ages of 16-19, I really don’t consider girls to be children anymore. They are usually more mature and developed than the guys their age, especially these days it really IS impossible to guess someone’s age! The girls who are 16 today, I could guess to be 24, honestly, due to their height, build, face, everything. In many cases, I can understand men being confused. They just see whether somebody is “developed” looking, or not.. on the contrary with somebody like me for example, I have a very childish face and build, and my fiancé used to always get some comments about him being a pedo, eventhough I am 23, so well-past legal age all around the world.. but, looks are looks and to most people, that’s the only thing that counts.
@ mel, well you’re not a model so you need to look at it in a different light, and you have to realize that models careers are veryyy short so she has to get on it NOW obviously, plus shes 19 almost 20, she is a young woman who can do whatever she wants with her body, im 18 , and it doesnt disturb me that shes topless, now if she was 15, then THAT i undertstand, but come on the chicks almost 20!
What does being a model have to do with it? You don’t have to be a model to be an expert in the industry, because I think I know more about fashion than your average model does. I know a ton about the casting process and can name any model off of any ad in a magazine or on the runway, so I think I’m pretty qualified. Models’ careers are very short, but look who was on the cover last time … Brooklyn Decker, who’s 24. I’m not saying she has to be 30, but in the commercial industry especially there’s a bit of leeway with age, whereas in the high fashion industry the rate of turnover is insane.
Also, I don’t think being a model (and I’ve been approached before) would really transform me into someone who’s prepared to pose nude on a cover.
How is it weird? She’s a year over the ‘legal’ age, plus she’s smokin, why shouldn’t she be able to take it off if she chooses.
Her eyebrows are way too thick. Just like her.
Well, damn! Lol
i don’t think she’s too thick, but i’ll admit that was clever haha
Funny comment,
but I don’t think there’s anywhere on earth where Kate Upton could be accurately described as ‘thick’- I mean, look at her arms and legs, and even her torso region (minus boobs) is pretty slim! Unless you were using the word ‘thick’ in reference to a lack of intelligence?
That was mean
“Hey, you’re a young, hot model, lets (un)dress you like Marilyn Monroe for another photoshoot you’ll be naked in!!!”
“So innovative, let’s do it!!!!”
…
What can I say, I’m blown away. Amazing.
Haha.. Love this comment!
My thoughts too. So funny that any model/actress/star that has big boobs and blonde hair will inevitably do a Marilyn Monroe styled shoot.
The Marilyn Monroe look is so old, seriously. Can they come up with someone new?
I think, she does it very well as Monroe.
Yes, much better than Lohan or Michelle Williams.
If you’re bored or inquisitive look up Monroe and sex bot training. It’s an illuminati thing–they dress almost all famous women up as Monroe to prove a point; they are in control and only certain folks can see through their brainwashing. Compelling stuff
*facepalm*
I think her face has too much of a cutesy, younger look to do Monroe. She screams showy high school girl, not mature and self confident woman, which to me is essential to pulling off the Monroe look.
The reason I don’t get why is because there were so many actresses and pin-ups who defined that era and who women wanted to resemble… the other woman max who is emulated so often even today is Brigitte Bardot, who makes more sense to me, because her look was much more modern in every way than Marilyn’s
hate the photoshoot, like the transparent shirt of the last picture, love MUSE
And I’m kind of disturbed by how popular Kate Upton is as a sex symbol when she is only 19! Its just kind of creepy that just last year she graduated from High School and there are 50 year old men drooling over her. I don’t think so much exposure (especially of this kind) can possibly be good for such a young girl.
Of all the recent Monroe-style photo shoots, this is the best, because Kate has a child’s eyes and Marilyn had such eyes.
agreed, she pulls it off better than anyone i’ve seen attempt the Marilyn look
Agree!
Agree, not particularly into her look generally but I love her in this shoot she looks fabulous, and as for the age comments, at 19 I was young and naive sure but I was very much a young, naive woman and not a child, I don’t have a problem with a 19 year old looking sensual since at that age it’s normal to be aware of your sexuality and to be enjoying it.
Just no.
She is so average, like any “pretty blonde” chick off the street. Not a good model at all, in my opinion. Nothing interesting here. Stick to bikini shoots, Kate.
Despite everything.. I’d give a lot to have breasts as ample as hers.
I had to laugh at “doesn’t limit herself to… swimwear and lingerie” and in this shoot she is naked or close to it! Great range.
Looks like Anna Nicole Smith.
She is gorgeous, and she actualy does look like Marilyn- more than anyone i’ve seen. She’s 19, so what? I’m 19, and definitely not a child anymore.
Yeah a 19 year is not a child, but that doesn’t mean it’s okay to go completely naked on a magazine that will be available worldwide, THAT is plain wrong!
Yeah I kinda agree Katy…. I also think she looks gorgeous, and well, this business is all about youth, the younger the better… Tecnically she’s been an adult for over a year. It’s her choice.
Oh and btw, I don’t think she looks 30 at all !
Amen!
Yeah, but you aren’t looking at the long term effects of this. If we keep promoting something that’s 19 as the epitome of beauty, we are setting the male ideal younger and younger. In my opinion, the male ideal is already a bit too young, considering that 50 year old men still lust after 25 year old women. And it also encourages them to think that teenagers are fair game … if Kate is 19, what’s the big difference between 19 and 18, or 17, or 16? It’s a matter of years, and to the mind of a man legality is a very abstract concept, whereas attraction is very physical.
I fully agree! Women are seen as pieces of meat with expiration dates and that is sickening. Now all men are going to get brainwashed into thinking only 19 year old girls are attractive. The “barely legal” porn industry is already very popular and that is just wrong!
I think just like you Mel. and “It’s basically telling random middle aged men it’s perfectly acceptable by society to lust after teenagers, and I think that’s wrong because the line is pretty blurry between 16, 17, 18, 19 …”
Once again I’m qway ahead of the game and said this in her last post only to be torn down by you same ladies.
men understand legality perfectly well. They’re not stupid, they’re not walking penis’s who can’t control themselves. This is merely an excuse some use. I know loads of guys who love older women, and young women too. They can appreciate us all. One of my friends cites freida Pinto and Lorraine Kelly (50 something tv presenter) as his ideal women. also I don’t know how many women I know who fancied zac efron in his high school musical days or the ID boys or rave about taylor in the Twilight movies. He’s was barely legal when they had him stripping off in those. And I’m not talking young women!
Yeah, but that’s the very crux of the issue. They do understand legality, and perhaps they wouldn’t take action, but promoting 19 years as the pinnacle of attractiveness certainly won’t help. It’s like you know fatty food can be yummy (at least in the majority of cases), but you don’t eat it because you want to be healthy. Does that make you less attracted to the fatty food? No. I think it’s the same issue with legality. If 19 years old is being promoted as attractive, perhaps men wouldn’t act on it, but they would still start being attracted more and more to younger girls since that’s what’s promoted and encouraged, and that’s dangerous.
Also, the point is that most women don’t fancy 18 year old boys … therefore it isn’t a threat to the way our society works, because Zac and Taylor only appeal to a specific subset of the female population and don’t promote this new ideal of the young male for predatory older women. But Kate here is being promoted as sexy to the general male population, and we all know males of any age are often attracted to women much younger than them, unlike with females.
maybe in a america, but here in britain I think you’ll find that isn’t a subset. Its widely acceptable for women to objectify men nowadays and if they look good, no one is worried about their age. that is a new standard and some say it is evening up the gender divide. Think of jesse metcalf and the wide hype he got in depserate housewives( never understood it myself) and he was only about 22. At 18 daniel radcliffe did full forntal nudity in Equus and all the newspapers and magazines were showing pictures of his buffed up body- lots of women drolling over those.
i’m not trying to justify sexual objectification. I have issues with it myself, and I am certainly not justifying kids being sexualised. However, we can’t just keep moving the line. If we say the line is drawn here, this is an adult, then we must repsect the rights of everyone over that line to make their own choices.
Lets concentrate instead on protecting kids. Most models seem to break into the industry at very young ages, 14-15 seeming about average. i think Miranda Kerr was 13. By the time they are 18 they will have walked adult shows, which do include nudity and very revealing, often sexual clothing, they will have been seen naked, been poked and prodded and examined and judged by countless people, many of them men, and certainly not all gay. They will be exposed to adults in a working environment, known for promiscuity and prolific drug use. I would argue that those influences over a protracted period of time during formative years, would have far more lasting effects. For most models I imagine by the time they reach 18 doing a shoot like the one above wouldn’t register as anything out of the ordinary. If we protect them up until they are 18 they stand a much better chance of being balanced and secure, and will be less effected by anything that happens not to mention more able to resist unhealthy influences.
Yes, we should draw a line. But I think it should be at 21 rather than 19. With 18 or 19 there’s a certain margin of error that includes girls who aren’t legal. If you’re attracted to people who look 19, then you’ll probably be attracted to 16 year old girls and 17 year old girls as well. We’re constantly skewing the ideal towards the borderline jailbait end of the spectrum, and that’s not OK. It’s also hard to tell whether a girl is 19 or 17, or 16. On the other hand, you probably wouldn’t confuse a 16 year old with a 21 year old. Whereas if we drew the line at 21, there’s less of a chance of guys being encouraged to be attracted to girls who aren’t legal.
With the guys thing, women are also less aggressive. 50 year old women won’t pull up to you to stare into the window of your car, honk at you, or be extremely overt and aggressive about their attentions to 18 year old boys (I’m guessing), whereas men are usually very dominant in the way they express their attraction. I mean, look how many couples in Hollywood for example have a very young girl paired with a much older guy, versus the opposite way around. It’s uncommon enough that Demi and Madonna were a big deal. I also see it so many more times even walking on the street, and it’s generally accepted by society. The young woman/old man concept is much more accepted and common than the old woman/young man. Also, the majority of men continue to lust after younger women, whereas women’s preferences usually change with age (hence the immense popularity of George Clooney). Those two stars you mentioned are among the zillions of young female stars who all appeal to older men. With the line issue, I’m not saying we should change the age of legality. But I do think we should draw the line of putting a model on a cover completely nude at around 23.
She just looks like any girl you could find on any college campus, really nothing special. Also I don’t care for her proportions, too thick in the middle and not enough meat or shape to the legs, especially the calves. She has great breasts.. that’s about all I have to say for this girl.
Love, of course!
As boring as all these Marilyn inspired spreads are (I mean Lindsay Lohan? *shudders*), I think Kate really captures something about the main crux and dichotomy of MM’s persona- childlike and playful but still highly sexual and sensual. It’s not really a physical resemblance per se but something else I can’t quite put my finger on…
Yeah…Lindsay should have never, EVER portrayed Marilyn. Oh, the mockery…at least that’s what it seemed like because the pics were so terrible. She’s no Marilyn!
Agree misscheeks. I actually like Kate way, way better like this than in her bikini pictures!
i really don’t get her appeal. her face is average, and i just found out today she is 19. really? she looked at least 30 on the SI cover :\
WOW she looks like Anna Nicole Smith, only prettier that Anna Nicole. Agree, she is toooo young to be taking such risque photos though!
I am so tired of Marilyn shoots.
the first picture is kind of weird. it looks like her head was put on a different body in photoshop. not saying that’s what they did, just that it looks like it.
There is something odd about her body or proportions in the fully nude, full body shot. Not sure if it’s photoshop, the angle, both.
it her body, stick legs +big middle
Wow how original, a Marilyn Monroe shoot, I don’t think that’s ever been done before. Plus, her eyebrows look atrocious, too thick and unnatural looking. Like 2 caterpillars on her face. Someone went crazy with the brow powder.
I have to ask, what is the big deal about this girl? All of a sudden, she’s everywhere, and I don’t understand why. It’s not as if she’s spectacular looking or anything. And I agree with the other commenters, the Marilyn Monroe thing is overdone and played out.
I can give you 2 reasons lol
Lol
cause she’s a stick with huge boobs
She is NOT a stick! Not even close!
agree jeez…! Artemis really likes harping on the same subject.
Yeah, the “stick” word. But seriously, Kate is FAR from a stick. If she’s a “stick”, then I guess Alexa Chung is so small she doesn’t even exist lol.
well, I guess for Artemis “stick” means “nonpear shaped”… nothing we could say would change her way of thinking
Agree…I think Artemis has a thing about ‘sticks’
and ‘big boobs’ lol. If Kate was pear-shaped, I suspect she would no longer be considered a ‘stick’ to her, yeah I said it! Yes lc, I think Alexa Chung would simply vanish into thin air if Kate is in any way stick-like. I guess we just have different definitions of what stick figures look like –> o+<. Wow, I have never used the word 'stick' so much in my life!
I think you’re absolutely right, ary
I wouldn’t call her a stick or anything. I just think it takes more than blonde hair and big boobs, and this is coming from someone who is a fan of boobs! Kate seems so over-hyped, just like Brooklyn Decker.
The eyebrows are awful!
LOVE the eyebrows. thats about it/
Yeah I love the eyebrows too! Especially contra the platin colored hair… Don’t really understand why some of you think they look awful?
LOVE the eyebrows
I don’t understand why everyone is so weirded out by this. Is she nude? Yes. But it’s tasteful, it’s not like she’s sitting open-legged with the camera pointing at her.
Agreed.
Agree! I’d say the SI shoots are way more sexual. This looks beautiful and sensual
You all are complaining about age. At 19, she is a year above the legal age limit for several things in this country. How old must she be in order for this shoot to be considered appropriate?
Exactly!
I agree with you Bebe. 19 year old girls (and guys) are members of the Armed Forces. If they are mature enough for that, they are mature enough to pose semi-nude in yet another tacky Marilyn shoot.
This is not semi nude, she is fully nude in some of the pictures.
Fully nude means we see her nipples and vulva, to be frank. She is strategically covered. This is not different from that SI body paint shoot a while back. Even if she was completely nude she is not a minor.
Not a fan of the thick, dark caterpillar brow, especially when accompanied by bleached blonde hair. Yes, I know it was for the shoot. Doesn’t make it attractive.
Never have been a fan of her body either – she is highly overrated. There are lots of non-famous girls with much nicer bodies and faces.
i was really hating on her on the SI shoot but i actually kinda like these pics… well, i like the full blown naked pic and i like the last pic with the see-through shirt!
her face… ehhh
her age… no bigs! models have always been so young!! nothing new about that and 19? the “legal” age is 18. whatev
She is simply beautiful.
I think she looks really pretty, and at a legal age. Tasteful and sexy pics IMO
Magazine seems more ‘art’ than fashion with all the nude poses……….
Is it a mens or womens magazine?
yes, i agree it is truly strange she is 19, and posed in a hyper-sexual photo shoot. However, she does have an amazing body. maybe i’m biased, because at 23 my body looks likes this (at 19 I had the figure of a stripper pole- classy analogy, yes?), so i have a little favoritism towards a curvy figure. good for her, as long as she is happy and healthy. overrated? probably, but honestly who isn’t?
I don’t think Barbara Palvin is overrated. The contortions and very particular camera angles Kate needs in order to make her stomach look flat or desirable look ridiculous. Someone like Barbara Palvin can just stand there and she’s beautiful. No crazy contortions. Kate’s face is just so plain, I don’t find anything at all special about her. She leaves me feeling cold, as opposed to someone who is not overrated. Maybe Cintia Dicker would be another person that would 100% overshadow Kate and be considered “not overrated”. She doesn’t need to do the twist to be hot. All this boob worship these days just seems silly.
Love her curves!! You go girl!!
But for some reason, her eyebrows are kind of distracting, like they look really odd to me.
I CANNOT STAND her face! Something about it…pisses me off O_o’…She’s 19? Wow. She looks MUCH older..
And yes the whole Marilyn-pouty sexy inspiration is getting tiresome. Time to be original.
I know what you mean… When I see her face I can only think of one word: Bimbo. Annoying.
For the people saying she’s 19 and therefore “legal” and old enough to pose like this: Yes, she certainly is, but it is still very alarming. A 19 year old is still a TEEN and fresh out of high school. A 19 year old is a girl, not a woman. I’m only 20 myself and I still feel very, very young and would not want my nude photos to be plastered everywhere with 50 year old men drooling over them. Most girls at this age are still mentally somewhere in between childhood and adulthood; they still have a lot of insecurities, and they are still developing mentally and emotionally. The human brain continues to develop until 25. It cannot possibly be good for such a young girl to become a sex symbol pretty much overnight. Its a lot to take in. Other models who have been modeling since their teens are not sex symbols. The fashion industry is very different than the glamour model industry. Other young models are basically just coat hangers. They’re not really being objectified like this. I just find it emotionally dangerous for a 19 year old to be going through this.
So true!
I completely agree River.
Great comment.
i agree sex market is out of control, but who am I to say to a 19 year old woman/girl I even don’t know what she must or mustn’t do? I fully “grow up” at 17, emotionally and mentally speaking. The only difference now, when I’m 21, is I’m a bit less delusional and more disappointed with this world …but I still would be prepared to take risks at 17 without regretting it now.
I agree with you ary. Kate is 19. I know these rules vary from country to country, but over here in the UK she can legally vote, get married, have sex and apply for a mortgage amongst other things. In any case, I don’t believe that intellectual/mental/emotional maturity should *always* be tied to age, especially in the case of a 19 year old. Some teenagers are emotionally and mentally immature, some are not. Some adults (Kate is an adult legally anyway) are emotionally and mentally immature, some are not. At 19, my mum was earning her own money for her family, studying for a university degree and looking after a baby. Look, I found Brooke Shield’s (semi)nude/sexual scenes in “The Blue Lagoon” very alarming and unacceptable because she was only 14 years old, but for someone like Kate who’s almost 20 years old I don’t think so. If Kate at 19 is too young for modelling, then what is this imaginary “cut-off” point when it’s no longer considered unacceptable for her to pose nude? When does one stop becoming a ‘girl’ and start becoming a ‘woman’ in the modelling industry?
woww your mum sounds awesome
But yup, erotic pictures are never going to be “acceptable”, since they usually play with undiscolsed desires and taboos, so, if she’s not hurting anyone and she’s not denigrating (that much) 21th century moral values (like unaffectionate porn, surgery vortex and pathological consumerism, starring KK or Heidi Montag, which are IMO much more damaging to out society), i’m for the let live spirit! These pictures aren’t any artsy epitome but they are far more tasted than the Coverage Swimsuit blabla she did, so I don’t get why everybody is feeling uncomfortable now.
Yeah she is awesome! I should tell her more! :’)
I don’t think it’s about the individual person. It’s a broader concept that has nothing to do with maturity, imo. It’s an issue of promoting 19 as the epitome of attractiveness and encouraging/making it acceptable for guys to lust after teenagers (who could be jailbait) rather than 20 something year old women. To me, that is wrong.
Have you seen fashion shows? Or fashion editorials in non-US magazines? They very often show the girls in transparent tops with no bras, or modeling lingerie…or just topless period. What’s most disturbing about runway models showing their breasts is that not only are the models underage, but their bodies are clearly underdeveloped and not yet mature (unlike Kate Upton). So it’s very Lolita-esque.
That being said…A lot of girls start developing when they’re 12 years old, and by the time they’re 15 or 16, they act pretty sexual. Go to any club and you will see teenage girls dancing like they’re strippers (just like Miley Cyrus and other teen stars). I think that most teenage girls are way more sexual than older people like to think.
Kate Upton is clearly physically a woman. We don’t really know what she’s like emotionally or mentally — that’s for her to decide. But if she feels like she’s ready to pose for these types of photos, and if she isn’t worried about having a serious career later on, then I don’t see anything wrong with it either.
Yes, I’ve seen fashion shows and I don’t agree with underage girls modeling. However, I don’t find them anywhere near as bad as what Kate Upton is doing. A 16 year old girl walking down the runway with her breasts exposed wearing an outfit designed by most likely a gay man is not objectifying or degrading. People go to fashion shows to look at art, not to look at models.
Agree 100%. Fashion models aren’t marketed as the male ideal, Kate is. Maturity really has nothing to do with it imo. As I said, it’s the idea you’re putting out there, whether you’re mature or not, that it’s perfectly fine to go for teenage girls. Yes there is a thin line between 22, 21, 20, but there’s also a thinner line between 19 and 17 or 16. Preferably we’d have a margin of error that still made the girl legal.
Completely agree, vlada. I find a bit odd that people are saying she’s too young to be sexualised/posing nude I mean, there’s not really a set age when you can say someone is ‘emotionally ready’ to be branded a sex symbol; you don’t suddenly turn 21 and think “Yeah, I’m ready to have old men lusting over my pictures now.” There’s not an overnight change than takes place between the ages of 20 and 21 in terms of mental maturity, so I don’t really see what the problem is!
In regards to the brain not being fully developed until 25, there are probably some 19 year olds who are equally as mature as 25 year olds and vice versa. Personally, I wouldn’t be comfortable posing nude or in bikinis, probably at any age but if Kate is ready for that sort of attention and thinks she can handle it, as she seems to be able to, then I don’t see why anyone should feel ‘uncomfortable’ because of that- it’s her choice.
I Kate is really going to make that much difference concerning what age men think is acceptable to ‘lust’ after- at the age of 18, I’ve had (older) men wolf-whistle at me, and sometimes even seen them give certain looks to young girls, so you know EXACTLY what they’re thinking; all this was LONG before Kate even came on the scene! I think guys are able to make their own minds up to be honest and this argument is similar to people saying that plus size models will simply “encourage people to be overweight,” which I think is ludicrous!
Agree 100% Zoe! And I can relate to the whole lusty “older men” situation *sigh* This isn’t a knee-jerk reaction like people are making it out to be. Just because some people feel young and emotionally/mentally immature at 19 doesn’t mean that *everyone* (including Kate) necessarily feels like that, it’s a little bit condescending to be honest. Also, Kate posing naked is hardly this dramatic benchmark for the sudden sexualisation of young women is it? The main crux of the modelling industry and Hollywood (especially with respect to women) is that of youth. Over the years, I’ve heard of cases of ageism against women especially in Hollywood with certain actresses going under the knife to battle any signs of ageing, losing out to younger stars, getting less fulfilling scripts as they get older etc. Hollywood and the modelling industry has and always will be driven by this obsession with youth and more specifically the youthful woman. I’m not saying that’s a good thing but imho Kate hasn’t dramatically changed/affected this trend at all.
Nice to see someone is on the same page as me, misscheeks!
It isn’t a benchmark, but it does need to change. Just because something has always happened doesn’t mean it’s not wrong. Also, I don’t think it reflects on us personally, since I just think the whole concept of posing nude at 19 is wrong. It’s not an issue of maturity, it’s an issue of promoting the wrong ideal to men.
but once again… whats a “wrong” ideal? whats a good ideal? And I still think men don’t take media as ideal promoters in the same obsessive way women do… It’s us, women, who are damaging our bodies through surgery, feeling ugly for ridiculous picky things and believing that if a man is drooling over a teen’s picture, he will not drool for an attractive woman in her thirties. .I’ve already said to many guys, who were interested in me, I hate beard and pectorals, and never made one of them feel insecure… or maybe I’ve been lucky… the guys I’ve been knowing really like different things, and are expecting the same from women.
@ Mel- what’s a wrong or right ideal? If it’s not an issue of maturity as you point out and it’s not a benchmark of sexualisation, then what is it? Do you mean ‘wrong ideal’ as in the media presenting unrealistic ideals of beauty which we as normal women cannot live up to? Then if that’s the case, isn’t basically *every* SI, VS model, Hollywood actress, attractive woman in the media etc. guilty of promoting such unattainable images of beauty to men, not just Kate?
Agree 100% Ary! P.s I hate beards on men too!
No, it’s wrong in that it’s promoting a very youthful (borderline adolescent) ideal. Don’t you think the ideal should be a mature woman, and not a teenage girl? Regardless of how the girl looks, the fact remains that she’s 19. And honestly it creeps me out how many 50 year old men check me out, and I’m only 18 … and this is partly the media’s fault for portraying someone like Kate.
I think the issue is that yes, it’s not a benchmark of sexualization, but the old tradition needs to change. If we keep putting girls just out of adolescence nude on the cover of magazines, men are going to continue lusting after adolescents, legal or not. And this kind of behavior is being encouraged, so now that some men even think that women are past their prime when they are 25 (which, unbelievably, I’ve heard before). Just because it’s a status quo doesn’t mean it’s wrong. It’s promoting youth fetishization (and not just youth, but extreme youth … as in 16, 17 years old), and to me that just isn’t right.
Well personally I think its disgusting when women pose nude for male magazines at any age. Its degrading. I don’t mind nudity when its done tastefully/artistically, but posing for Sports Illustrated and other similar things is just sleazy and it objectifies women. I’m not a prude, but in a time when there are still so many gender inequalities, I think women should rise above just being seen as sex symbols. Not only in models, but in actresses and singers too. It makes me sad to see that an actress or singer has to objectify herself to sell a record. Men don’t have to do that!
Although I find nudity in sleazy magazines unacceptable at any age, I think a 25 year old woman, for example, would be more ready for something like that. Kate Upton has been being promoted as a sex symbol since the minute she turned 18! What do you think something like that is doing to her emotionally? She is still so young and, as I said before, she is in the crossroads of womanhood and girlhood. How is she going to feel in 10 years from now when she starts aging and isn’t marketable anymore? Its going to be extremely devastating to her; more so than it would be for an older, more mature model who didn’t get her start in such a degrading industry.
Agree one hundred percent, River.
I actually really like this Marilyn shoot. IMO, aside from one or two lesser known models, Kate does Marilyn better than anyone.
These shots seems very age inapproriate for her.Erotic!It is a disgrace a model of her age posing like that!Moral degradation!
i think that her body is banging! really beautiful. but i don’t like that hair and those eyebrows. i love bold eyebrows, but these are too much even for me:D
She is a bombshell. Her beauty is above average. admit it.
I would say she is above average in attractiveness and hotness, but not in regards to beauty.
Nope, nothing special to me.
I thought she’d be about 30 years old, not 19. Thats strange..
She looks much better in photoshoots than in normal, real-life kind of pics. There’s a lot of photoshop in this article and she looks older than her actual age, however she is still a pretty girl overall.
*these pics not this article lol
Despite her beautiful features (with which I agree she has), she is (and i think she will remaining) Marilyn Monroe look-a-like-wannabe.
A lot of people are commenting on her age, but, really, this is tame compared to what a lot of models her age and younger have posed for in HF. Not saying it’s right, but this is far from shocking.
Whatever. I feel that something like this shoot is directed towards guys. There’s nothing here for me with regards to fashion, art, etc. I would certainly spend my own money on other magazines. Really, she seems to be a lad’s girl in general and so holds pretty much zero interest for me.
She looks like a nice girl, but I don’t know, she doesn’t look “model”, nor “beautiful”…I feel like she’s considered some sex symbol just because she has blonde hair, blue eyes and big breasts, and there’s nothing else :/ her face is very plain.
I think she looks gorgeous in these pics. She doesn’t resemble Marilyn though. Looks a lot like Anna Nicole.
terrible.
She really doesn’t do anything for me… I guess she can look very sexy sometimes, but that’s about it…hated the sports illustrated cover.
wow this is playboyish. kinda from golden years of playboy. like.
Her body is actually kind of weird to me. I don’t dislike it or anything, but her legs look too skinny for the rest of her. She doesn’t do much for me.
I don’t care about her age, 19 is not that young, but all these Marilyn shoots are getting boring.
Exactly….the marilyn shoots need to end!!
These shoots are boring as hell, why does every single person in hollywood feel the need to pose naked? Seriously? If I like an actress or whatever, I want to read the INTERVIEW and see some nice pictures, I don’t need to see your boobs or ass… Add that to the fact that it’s photoshopped to death and that we see naked women almost daily [music videos, ads, commercial, websites], this is not interesting, new, original or sexy at all.
If anyone wants to be original in hollywood, try keeping your clothes on and get your own flippin style instead of ripping off marilyn monroe over and over and over again.
She’s so beautiful, why are everybody against her? Or let’s just say this better: why are every girls against her? You always complain about super thin model or about plastic surgery women, but when you see a gorgeous, curvy, natural girl you are still not happy OH COME ON.
She’s too young, too large, too average, she has got too much breast, too thick eyebrows…
Let’s just accept the fact that she’s just way beautiful than most of you
“Let’s just accept the fact that she’s just way beautiful than most of you”
LMAO. Someone’s trolling…
She’s not curvy in the least, except for the big boobs. She’s just thick around the midsection, no waist or hips to speak of. Get your eyes checked before you call someone curvy.
Different people have different opinions. You know how some guys and girls think Megan Fox is hot and other guys and girls think she’s not… It’s like that. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder after all, so everyone will have a different opinion and different taste. We don’t all like the same kinds of people. I think Kate Upton is very average. She does looks pretty in this photoshoot and in other photos, but in real-life photos she looks plain. Her body is nice, but the only stand out is her boobs. Normally I think blondes can be classically beautiful and sexy like Doutzen Kroes, Charlize Theron and Scarlett Johansson. But Kate Upton actually does look generic to me. She’s a cute looking girl and she looks pretty in photos and photoshoots, but outside of that’s she just plain. Plus there’s a lot of photoshop and styling in a lot of her photoshoots, she looked best in the Guess one I think, though that didn’t even look like her that much.
I think its weird and creepy how she started being “sexualised” at such a young age, before she was even 19 like now. Women should start objectifying men in every way from now on! lol.
Well really then, why do so many of us love Adriana Lima? Certainly I don’t think I’m prettier than her …
Versus, could you do a post on Robyn Cole’s runway show at London Fashion week? I bet that’s going to be controversial:-)
ENOUGH with the marilyn inspired spreads.
+1.
@Versus can you do a post on model/2012 SI rookie Michelle Vawer please
So over this girl.
My favourite picture is the one with her actually wearing clothes. I find these pictures sleezy for some reason. Normally im fine with nude photos. Maybe its her age, I dont know, just not a fan.
weirdly enough, these pictures of her entirely naked are more tasteful to me than her SI ones where she’s wearing a bikini three sizes too small
She’s very pretty, but i don’t like her eyebrows here. The first 3 nude pics look nice and tasteful, but i don’t like the 4th nude pic
I like her body, but her face is average. she’s not the most beautiful face I’ve seen. and I think its better to have a pretty face than the body. I like that she’s not stick skinny though. its refreshing to see someone whose thighs aren’t bony.
I don’t think the people who say 19 isn’t too young is looking at the long term consequences of promoting such a youthful ideal. If we keep saying that 18 is the sexiest age, now do you wonder why 25 year old women already feel past their prime? And “legality” isn’t a physical transformation. If we’re teaching guys to lust after someone who looks like Kate (young, teenager), then they will continue to be attracted to girls like that, regardless of whether they are “legal.” Do you really think the mind stops and checks itself in the process of being physically attracted in a purely visual way and says “oh no, she’s not legal, therefore she’s not sexy.” I don’t think so. They will just go for teenage girls who look like Kate, legal or not.
I fully agree with you! I’m only 20 (almost 21) and I already am starting to feel “old” and “past my prime” when I read some disgusting comments from men–i mean pigs–on websites promoting young women like Kate. Its harmful to society and incredibly sexist.
Try and stay away from those websites, they are indeed harmful and VERY sexist. Their number one goal in life is to score with as many young girls and women as possible and they do not respect our gender.
I agree with both River and mel’s points here. I think you guys hit the nail on the head.
Thankfully there are lots of men who don’t go to those websites, let alone comment, and are actually decent
Stop going on those sites River. I’m 100% sure that those losers who will rip apart or degrade women from the comfort of their computers, wouldn’t even be able to utter a single word in real life, they’re cowards! I’m not a man hater either but when I think of certain issues concerning gender inequality (especially the whole treatment of women regarding rape and victim blaming), I get so angry! But I have to remind myself that for every vile, misogynistic man, there are good men who love and respect women and treat them as equals.
Aww, thanks for the reassuring comments Misscheeks. I really hope you’re right about men. I’m just really afraid of all of them being pigs; my own father, as much as I love him, is a pig and has been making misogynistic comments about women my whole life (and its no surprise that he met my Mom when she was only 19 and he was already in his 30′s). And as if my father making me insecure wasn’t enough, the only serious boyfriend I’ve ever had was also a pig who made me feet like shit as a woman. I’m still waiting for a GOOD man to come along to prove to me that good men exist out there.
Aww River *hugs* I’m sorry about your dad, that sounds awful! It’s up to us to educate the older folks isn’t it? *sigh* Your boyfriend sounds awful too, you are too good for him, it’s really his loss. You’re young and I hope you find someone who treats you with the respect you deserve! Luckily for me I come from a family of opinionated and bossy women, any man coming my way better watch out lol!
I agree River! And I’m so sorry about your father and boyfriend. Good men do exist! And I’m confident you will find them as long as you keep up hope
I agree with Kim – don’t go on those sites. You have to keep in mind that men like many different things. Go on sites for chubby chasers….some men like morbidly obese women. Does that mean you should get really fat to please those men? Of course not! You also don’t need breast implants, botox and a professional airbrush artist. Just be healthy in the body and mind and you will attract the right people and attention. If you worry too much about the superficial, you’re going to attract others that worry too much about the superficial. I’m 28 and still feel sexy and young! My friend is 35 and is gorgeous…and so is my mom at 48.
“If we’re teaching guys to lust after someone who looks like Kate (young, teenager), then they will continue to be attracted to girls like that, regardless of whether they are “legal”… They will just go for teenage girls who look like Kate, legal or not.”
But men aren’t mindless robots though (well not all of them lol
). But are you really suggesting that men will go after under-age girls and break the law because the media teaches them to ‘lust’ after girls who look like Kate? I don’t think so. Men who do that are paedophiles and that has nothing to do with the media promoting youthfulness. For better or worse, you are attracted to whoever you are attracted irrespective of what the media says. Yes the media lays down very rigid ideals of youth and beauty; ideals which actually pre-date the media and have been ingrained within society for hundreds if not thousands of years. In history and throughout different cultures, there has *always* been this obsession with youthful women (mostly because of associations with virginity, physical nubility and fertility). In some cultures which practice polygamy, it is customary for the man to continue to marry very young wives for the mere purpose of acquiring social status and also producing children. I guess it’s not too different from this whole notion of the “trophy wife” here in the West.
What I’m basically trying to say is that the media *already* promotes this “youthful ideal” through the images it produces that we as women are sometimes unfortunately forced to live up to: perky gravity-defying breasts, flat smooth stomachs free of stretchmarks, toned, cellulite-free limbs and bootys, wrinkle free faces- the list goes on. How many saggy-boobed, big bellied, wrinkly bodies have you seen idealised in the media? I can’t think of even one. With this in mind, so many celebrities but more specifically models fit this spectrum of the youthful ‘ideal.’ I would put anyone from Candice to Irina to yes, to Heidi Klum (so many women I know want to bounce back straight after babies and regain their youthful bodies like she has after 4 no less) and yes Kate on this list! So it’s not such a cut and dry issue imo.
Yes, the media does promote youth. But I do believe that the media does have an influence in how men think. How did we change from the ideal a few centuries ago of a fleshy pear shape to the current hourglassy/larger breasted look that seems to be in favor with the male population? The media does play a role. Moreover, I’m concerned that many guys actually do lust after teenage girls, and in promoting Kate the media is saying it’s basically OK to do that. These guys are not pedophiles, but they do like young girls. At 16 (and I really look my age), there were plenty of 30 year old men or older who would give me a second glance while I was just walking down the street. So yes, while I don’t believe they will take any action, they are physically attracted to that kind of figure and face, partly because of the media. There’s also a different kind of youth for a 25 year old woman versus a 16 year old girl. The 25 year old is still youthful, but she is still obviously a woman. Also, just because the media promotes youth now doesn’t mean we have to keep heading in that direction. Putting naked 19 year olds on the cover of magazines certainly won’t change that.
This is true about grown men ogling at young girls, I remember when I was about 14 and guys probably in their 30′s and 40′s would wolf whistle at me and my friends, granted we may have looked a little older than our age (due to makeup and clothes), but still it’s pretty disturbing to think about, especially when these grown men may well have had daughters of their own around the same sort of age…
I think she is Brooklyn Decker-esque. I don’t really think she is gorgeous in the face department, pretty, but not stunning. Her body is crazy hot though.
I agree & am so glad that so many women on here have brought attention to the “age 19″ thing with models going on lately. Hugh Heffner just dated TWINS that were 19 (along with another girl, of course) and I saw them interviewed and almost threw up – he is 85!!!
I’ve been noticing a trend lately of men in their 40′s & even 50′s dating ONLY young girls in their 20s & I think it’s sad – they grow older & the girls stay the exact same age. It DOES make me feel more & more like women have an expiration date & are not deemed to be desired by certain men once we hit a certain age. We ALL will get older, and the media is encouraging this trend big-time lately, and I do find it disturbing & am really glad so man people commented on it!
I am also tired of this Marilyn Monroe photo shoot thing – Kate does look beautiful here, but get a new concept already!!
Agreed! but Ive also noticed that a lot of older women dating much younger men too these days. It happens on both sides. Either way its creepy and disgusting. No decent person wants to see something like that, and I’m talking about serious age gaps. People should be with someone who is closer to their age and maturity level. Its all sick when old people, like old men perve on younger women. I mean, they don’t stand a chance probably and it’s just disturbing and wrong on so many levels.
I’m sort of on the fence about Kate Upton. When it comes to her age, I don’t think it’s *that* inappropriate for a 19 y/o to be doing this kind of photoshoot or SI, but keep in mind that she first appeared in SI as an 18 y/o (and she was in the body paint section as well, so she was technically posing nude), and has made a name for herself as a lingerie/swimsuit model, not a fashion model for haute couture designers like other teenage models. If Kate alrady in SI as an 18 y/o, I’m guessing that she wasn’t exactly new to the world of modeling by that age, and probably had been a swimsuit model for at least a year or two by then. I don’t think it’s inappropriate for her to be doing shoots like this as a 19 y/o, and I’m sure that many people will disagree with me on this point, but for some reason, I don’t think it’s wrong to see 16 y/o girls in fashion shows for Chanel and Louis Vuitton, but it bothers me to think of underage girls modeling skimpy lingerie and swimwear, especially since their still under parental control at that age, so their parents either don’t know what their children are modeling, or else they don’t care if their teenage daughters are being portrayed in a sexual manner. For some reason, high fashion modeling seems more innocent, because the focus is more on the clothing, as opposed to the model’s body parts.
As for Kate Upton, I think she’s definitely cute, and this is one of her better photoshoots. She kind of looks like Kim Novak here, I think she has a very nice bust, and the mole above her lip makes reminds me of Marilyn Monroe’s mole. However, I think she’s somewhat ordinary-looking otherwise, and I don’t think I’ve ever seen a picture of her and immediately thought, “I wish I looked like that.” Although she has nice legs, and a nice upper body, she doesn’t really have a defined waistline, hips, or a curvy rear end-her midsection doesn’t look very feminine to me, and her waist-to-hip ratio is a little too high for my liking. This is most likely a genetic thing, so there’s not much that one can do to change this. Also, I think her face is sort of average looking, and while she’s pretty, I wouldn’t say she’s drop dead gorgeous or anything.
I don’t mean this in a snide way or anything, but whenever I see Kate Upton, I always get the impression that she hasn’t quite lost her baby fat yet, or is a naturally heavier person, and wasn’t built to be this thin. It appears that she carries most of her weight in her face and midsection, which is where baby fat is typically stored. Or else her body isn’t naturally this thin, and without working out/dieting religiously, she’s on the pudgy side, and will gain a lot of weight once her metabolism slows down after she hits 30, or has kids, etc. I don’t mean this in a rude way-I actually think her face is really cute, as Kate has that chipmunk-y sort of look, kind of like Brigitte Bardot, if that makes sense, and she’s also lucky because her face will always look young- she’ll never need any type of facial fillers, won’t ever really worry about wrinkles, and won’t ever look older than 25 because of her apple cheeks.
Finally, this might just be me, but does anyone else think her body kind of resembles a bulimic girl’s body? I only say this because I’ve known a couple of girls with bulimia, and for all three of them, bulimia changed their bodies drastically. Before, all had a feminine hourglass or pear shape, but this ED didn’t really make them skinnier, they just lost their waistline and took on a more apple-shaped appearance (also, the constant vomiting gave them a chubby facial appearance, almost like they had the mumps). Hopefully, Kate doesn’t have bulimia, I just thought it was something worth mentioning, as I couldn’t help but notice.
so bored of the whole ‘marilyn’ thing going on in photoshoots/film etc right now
Well, in light of all the negativity because of jealous people, I think she looks drop dead gorgeous. I’m 19 and I totally admire her looks as well as her success.
Some people just can’t stand the fact that they can’t measure up to others.
Get a life.