Supermodel Gigi Hadid has apologized over a recent Vogue Italia cover, which has caused controversy after readers likened Hadid’s darkened skin to ‘blackface’.

Hadid appeared on the May cover of the fashion magazine with visibly darker make-up, causing offence to fans who stated that Hadid had allowed her face to be changed with the heavily bronzed look.

The supermodel took to her Instagram page to confront the accusations, stating she had little control of the shoot, which was photographed by famed photographer Steven Klein.

She said, “This is a photo of me returning home from my Vogue shooting on 3 April… you can see the level I have been bronzed to on set that day.
“Please understand that my control of a shoot 1. is non existent in terms of creative direction 2. ends completely when I leave set, and anything done to a photo in post is out of my control fully.
he bronzing and Photoshop is a style that S. Klein has done for many years and I believe was expected from the shoot (to show me in a different way creatively), BUT, although I understand what Vogue Italia’s intentions were, it was not executed correctly, and the concerns that have been brought up are valid.
“I want to address this for those who were offended by editing/retouching/colouring of the cover. Please know that things would have been different if my control of the situation was different.
“Regardless, I want to apologise because my intention is never to diminish those concerns or take opportunities away from anyone else, and I hope this can be an example to other magazines and teams in the future.”

Vogue Italia meanwhile took to its own social media account to state, “In our latest cover shoot by Steven Klein, the vision was to create a beachwear-themed story with a stylised bronzing effect.
“We understand that the result has caused some debate with our readers, and we sincerely apologise if we have caused any offence.”