Weird: Guess Swaps Cleavage for Sword Fights in Holiday Ads

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Guess has released its holiday 2014 ad campaign and it looks, uh, quite a bit different from what we're used to from the brand. Typically Guess goes sexed-up Americana for its campaigns, pairing big hair with bigger boobs in backdrops like bowling allies or cornfields. This time, they've looked east, employing photographer Chen Man to shoot models Megan Williams and Karmay Ngaia in Japan, practicing martial arts and participating in tea ceremonies.

The girls certainly still look sexy—lots of thigh going on—but the art direction is graphic, the hues are saturated, and the compositions are sophisticated. The end result is a campaign that reads, visually, like a high-fashion magazine editorial. The brand tells us the ads "will be featured in upcoming November and December issues of top fashion and lifestyle magazines," as well as across their own dot com and in their stores. This new direction is paired with the recent announcement that the company will close 50 of its North American doors, a move CEO Paul Marciano called "adapting to the new normal of retail today."

· Guess Will Close 50 North American Stores This Year [Racked]