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Sparkly Blackface Makeup Hits the Runway at Milan Fashion Week: See Pics of the Show

Claudio Cutugno fashion show
Claudio Cutugno presented his collection during Milan Fashion Week on Tuesday, Feb. 24, with models in blackface.

Risky fashion! 

The trend of designers who are pushing the envelope (see: Rick Owens’ crotch-exposing designs) doesn’t seem to be ending anytime soon. Claudio Cutugno presented his collection with models in sparkly blackface makeup on Feb. 24 during Milan Fashion Week.

Related: PHOTOS: Stars at Fashion Week 2015

The all-black themed show featured sheer blouses, feathered embellishments, and glitter speckled knitwear, and was reportedly inspired by Italian artist Emilio Isgro. Top fashion and beauty websites like Bustle, The Gloss, and Refinery 29 were quick to take note of the questionable use of makeup.

“Was there no one backstage who thought, ‘Hey, you know what else this kind of looks like?’ Putting glitter on top of black paint does not even remotely take away the insulting nature of this practice,” a fashion writer from Refinery29 argued.

Related: PHOTOS: Celebs sitting front row at Paris Fashion Week

blackface models
Model wore glittery blackface makeup at Milan Fashion Week.

The use of the dark makeup (and some black, glittered masks) was meant to present the models as if they were being swarmed by insects, according to the Daily Mail.

Related: PHOTOS: Stars without underwear

Named the winner of the Live Next Generation contest, the 22-year-old Italian was one of five finalists who received the opportunity to showcase their work. “I am hoping this is the beginning of a new phase, accelerating the growth of the new designers,” Italian Fashion Chamber CEO Jane Reeve said in a recent interview (via The Associated Press).

Cutugno’s show follows the Rick Owens Paris Fashion Week menswear show, where male models hit the catwalk with their private parts fully exposed on Jan. 22. The risky trend continued with models going braless in sheer blouses for the Gucci Fall 2015 show.

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