People News

Amy Winehouse's family furious with Jean Paul Gaultier

By April MacIntyre Jan 27, 2012, 18:15 GMT

Arielle Dombasle (R) and Jean Paul Gaultier (L) - Gaultier debuted his Amy Winehouse-inspired spring/summer 2012 collection at Paris Fashion Week. © Pixplanete / PR Photos

Amy Winehouse's family are furious with fashion designer Jean Paul Gaultier.

Gaultier debuted his Amy Winehouse-inspired spring/summer 2012 collection at Paris Fashion Week.

Winehouse's family released a press statement that took the designer, a favorite of Madonna and Lady Gaga, to task over his runway show that featured Winehouse's signature style looks on beehive-sporting models wearing heavy black eyeliner.

Gaultier shared that Winehouse inspired his collection, telling reporters, "Amy Winehouse was a true style icon. What she stands for above all, is uniqueness. Both in music and the way she dressed, she mixed a great many influences to create her style."

Mitch Winehouse's press statement reveals the depth of the family's pain at the perceived exploitation of Ms. Winehouse:

"The family was upset to see those pictures, they were a total shock. We're still grieving for her loss, and we've had a difficult week with the six-month anniversary of Amy's death. To see her image lifted wholesale to sell clothes was a wrench we were not expecting or consulted on. We're proud of her influence on fashion but find black veils on models, smoking cigarettes with a barbershop quartet singing her music in bad taste. It portrays a view of Amy when she was not at her best, and glamorizes some of the more upsetting times in her life. That's upsetting for her family."