Gosha Rubchinskiy’s Allegedly Inappropriate Casting Spotlights The Fashion Industry’s Messy Morals

Over the weekend, a 16-year-old boy alleged that Russian streetwear designer Gosha Rubchinskiy pressured him into sending explicit photos of himself. The boy, Jan Silfverling, posted conversations he had with Rubchinskiy over Instagram and the WhatsApp messenger app that appear to show the designer prodding for nude photos. Shortly after the initial accusation, another unidentified male surfaced with allegations that Rubchinskiy requested lewd photos. Rubchinskiy categorically denied the accusations in statements and said that a conversation about casting Silfverling in a runway show was manipulated to make the designer’s requests look malicious. In the screenshots Silfverling posted, Rubchinskiy makes repeated urgent requests for photos. “Send me now something from the bathroom,” one message reads. Silfverling writes back that he can’t because the bathroom is in his mom’s room, and Rubchinskiy aggressively pushes back. “You can go to the bathroom and do it quickly please,” the message reads. “I don’t believe your mum come to bathroom together with you.” Read more at GQ.