In an era where the line between physical form and digital fabrication blurs with unsettling ease, the case of model Francheska Pujols versus Rainbow Shops - refiled this June in New York State Supreme Court - offers a stark lesson in consent, particularly for the intimate apparel industry, where the body is both product and art. Pujols, who posed for a Rainbow Shops campaign in 2024, alleges the retailer used AI-generated images of her likeness without permission, even after a brief attempt at private settlement collapsed. The refiled complaint includes a new piece of evidence: an Instagram post from the account of Kiss Don't Tell, an online boutique, depicting Pujols in a chair with one knee raised, her undergarments exposed. The pose and wardrobe echo her original Rainbow Shots shoot, and both brands share the same social media manager on LinkedIn. "I did not pose for, approve, or authorize any such depiction," Pujols states, noting the image damages her professional reputation. This is not merely a legal squabble; it is a bellwether for the lingerie world, where the intimacy of the garment - historically a symbol of private allure and personal agency - now collides with AI's unblinking ability to replicate and recontextualize. The case lands just days before New York's Fashion Workers Act takes full effect, requiring modeling agencies to register and mandating explicit, separate consent for digital likenesses created through AI. For the Lingerie Museum, this underscores a pivotal shift: the corset, the garter, the slip - once crafted by hand to shape the body - are now being digitally remade without permission. As we archive these garments, we must also archive the fight for the wearer's autonomy over her own image, a battle as intimate as the lace itself.
Originally reported by WWD