Hong Kong star Karen Mok comes under fire in China for wearing Dolce & Gabbana in music video

Name: Dolce & Gabbana founders apologise for controversial China campaign
Uploaded: 2021-06-13T12:30:00.000Z
Duration: 1 min 39 s
Description: Dolce & Gabbana founders apologise for controversial China campaign

Dolce & Gabbana is seen as hostile towards China in some quarters following a 2018 controversy about an ad showing a model trying to eat spaghetti with chopsticks

The singer’s studio issued an apology and said the singer’s choice of outfit had been ‘negligent’

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Karen Mok’s choice of outfit was deemed offensive to some internet users. Photo: Handout

Mimi Lau

Published: 8:30pm, 13 Jun 2021Updated: 10:10pm, 13 Jun 2021

The studio of Hong Kong pop singer Karen Mok has been forced to issue an apology after she prompted controversy on Chinese social media for wearing Dolce & Gabbana in her latest music video.

The brand has been seen in some quarters as anti-Chinese following a 2018 controversy over an advertisement that showed an Asian woman trying to eat pizza and spaghetti with chopsticks.

The adverts were criticised by mainland audiences for “publicly insulting China” and the crisis escalated after an online leak of screenshots from a private conversation showed Stefano Gabbana, the brand’s co-founder, making insulting remarks about the country. Gabbana and the brand’s co-founder Domenico Dolce eventually issued a public apology.

Mok’s studio Mok-A-Bye Baby Workshop posted a notice on Saturday afternoon apologising for the “negligence” involved in her choice of outfit while “seeking forgiveness among fans and friends of the artist”. The short statement did not mention Dolce & Gabbana by name.

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Dolce & Gabbana founders apologise for controversial China campaign

“The studio’s staffers failed to screen and look into the brand name’s problems,” the statement said. Her studio has asked the video be taken down from all platforms.

The profile on her Weibo account, which showed her wearing Dolce & Gabbana, was also changed to show a different outfit.