Photo of a protester with a Polo Ralph Lauren coat: watch out for retouched photos

Published on : 07/23/2021 – 11:17

On Facebook and Twitter, the photo that is shared shows a policeman on horseback, with a neon yellow jacket, wielding a baton at a protester wearing a black hooded puffer jacket. On his back, the logo of the brand “Polo Ralph Lauren”, strangely resembling the scene taking place right next to him. Shared nearly 7,000 times in this tweet, the shot would be taken at the perfect instant to align the two scenes, as suggested by twitter account who shares it.

Since July 10, the photo is shared in English and in French, without mentioning its exact date or the fact that it has been modified. “Incredible photo taken in June 2020 in London”, can we read for example in this publication Facebook shared two hundred times.

To find the original photo, we used a reverse image search (see how to do this here) on Google Images. One can find the original photo without the “Polo Ralph Lauren” logo on the person’s back coat, on the website of the American online image bank Getty Images. The photo was taken on June 6, 2020 by Daniel Leal-Olivas, photographer for the AFP agency, in London.

We can find the photo in This article from the English media “The Independent”, which mentions the event in question of June 6, 2020. During a demonstration of the Black Lives Matter movement in central London, several charges by the British mounted police took place. In this article from the Huffington Post, we can see another photo of the mounted police during the demonstration.

The image shared on social networks, where the “Polo Ralph Lauren” logo has been added, can be found on the Belgian artist’s Instagram profile. Marijn Achternaam, which hijacks photos by adding logos of famous brands. We find the image in a publication of June 18, 2021 accompanied by the caption “All this Polo on, I got horsepower⁠⁠”, a phrase taken from the lyrics of the song “Mercy” by Kanye West.

Contacted by the Observers editorial staff, the artist and graphic designer explained that he wanted to work on the issues of police violence and racism, through the misappropriation of the logo of a luxury brand:

“Nowadays you cannot believe everything you see. This is also the case in my work “All this Polo on, I got horsepower” [en français : “Avec du Polo sur le dos, j’ai plus de chevaux sous le capot”]. The work is a photo I found on the internet, in which I then photoshoped the Polo Ralph Lauren logo on the jacket. The theme of the work is of course police violence, racism and the oppression of public opinion.

I work in an advertising agency, so branding and logos have always fascinated me, especially when used out of context. Nowadays, people have become numb to the issues the world is facing, but we are obsessed with material goods, especially if they are made by luxury brands. That’s why I try to present the issues in an aesthetic and appealing way so that the viewer doesn’t immediately dismiss them and is ready to think about the topic. “

_{Instagram post by @marijnachternaam from May 17, 2021, captioned “Moving your future”, where we can see a block of ice falling into the water and the word “Hell” written using the logo of the Shell oil company.}

_{Instagram post by @marijnachternaam from May 24, 2021, captioned “All that glitters ain’t gold⁠⁠”, where we can see a young child wrapped in a survival blanket and the word “Refucci” written using the logo of the luxury brand Gucci.}

“The Ralph Lauren brand also has symbolic value. It’s a reference to the black hip-hop community of the 80s and 90s where they challenged classism. [discrimination fondée sur l’appartenance ou la non-appartenance à une classe sociale, NDLR] while wearing Ralph Lauren. By taking something exclusive, which was not made for them and which was not easily accessible to them, they took responsibility. ”

If you want to learn more about image checks, check out the Twitter account. @ InfoIntoxF24.