Jordan Wolfson Creates Unsettling Prada Campaign Featuring Digital Avatars

Artist Jordan Wolfson has directed Prada's Spring/Summer 2026 advertising campaign, marking his return to moving-image work since 2017-18. The campaign, titled 'I, I, I, I AM… PRADA,' features actors Carey Mulligan, Nicholas Hoult, Damson Idris, and model Hunter Schafer alongside unnaturally large, computer-generated birds. Wolfson, known for provocative video art and sculptures involving violence and digital avatars, incorporates his signature unsettling aesthetic without explicit violence. The campaign includes still images and a short video where models repeatedly say 'I' before concluding with 'I am,' while the avian figures move ominously around them. Prada's statement describes the collaboration as exploring 'ceaseless possibilities' and 'multiplicities of identity,' though the campaign's eerie tone contrasts with typical fashion advertising. Wolfson previously gained attention for works like a 2017 Whitney Biennial VR piece depicting violent assault and a 2023 Fondation Beyeler VR experience involving unexpected body-swapping. This project continues the trend of luxury brands collaborating with contemporary artists, following similar partnerships by Dior, Louis Vuitton, and others with figures like Carrie Mae Weems, Cindy Sherman, and Nan Goldin. Art critic Emily Watlington questioned in 2024 whether such collaborations support or subsume artistic practice.