Balenciaga Rodeo Bag Spring 2024 Ad Campaign

Review of Balenciaga Rodeo Bag Spring 2024 Ad Campaign by Photographer Mario Sorrenti with models Nicole Kidman, Yang Chaoyue, and Amelia Gray

Balenciaga examines the style possibilities of a contemporary icon with the new campaign for its Rodeo Bag shot by photographer Mario Sorrenti.

The campaign stars actors Nicole Kidman – who also just repped Balenciaga at the Met Gala – and Yang Chaoyue and model Amelia Gray, who has been on a tear this year. Sorrenti captures these poised and talented women in simple studio portraiture before a gray backdrop. In addition to emphasizing the personality of each figure, the approach draws out the versatility of its star bag.

This versatility is especially palpable in connection with the styling, which ranges from lissome sportswear to sophisticated tweed sets. In some images, the bag is laden with personalized charms, while in others it simply remains its sleek self.

The campaign was released in tandem with another Instagram wipe from Balenciaga, which has recently been a consistent practice for the brand with major releases or marketing pushes. The move does exude a kind of aloof cool, as if the brand doesn’t care if anyone can see its past efforts, but is focused strictly on the present. It’s a move that wouldn’t work for most other brands, especially smaller and independent ones who need to be discoverable and make connections on social media, but Balenciaga has the infrastructure and name recognition where it can get away with keeping many secrets to itself.

But at the same time, the imagery seems to say that Balenciaga has no secrets: here is the bag, here is the person wearing the bag. It’s a strikingly direct approach that nonetheless maintains the brand’s distinct character and convincingly paints the Rode as a contemporary icon of sophisticated cool.