Vogue Brazil slammed for editing able-bodied models into amputees for Paralympics campaign

Fashion magazine Vogue Brazil has been criticised for retouching models to make them appear disabled in a photoshoot celebrating Paralympians.

Actors Cleo Pires and Paulo Vilhena had their limbs removed in post-production in a photoshoot for Vogue Brazil’s September issue, thethe reported.

The photograph was part of the magazine’s “We are all Paralympians” campaign, which claimed to “highlight the relevance of Brazilian disabled athletes”.

Vogue Brazil posted one of the images to their Instagram earlier this week and soon after received a deluge of negative criticism from social media users.

“Ridiculous campaign, disrespectful, zero representation,” one person wrote.

“Why not use real Paralympic athletes?” another questioned.

Ex-Paralympic equestrian rider Marnie Payne, who competed in the Atlanta Olympics in 1996, expressed her “disgust” in the comment section below the post.

“How dare you put this up…I’d make a public apology to the International Paralympic committee,” Ms Payne said.

Brazilian wheelchair tennis player Natalia Mayara took to Facebook to support the campaign.

“The visibility that these actors have will reach many more people around the world,” Ms Mayara wrote.

The photograph has since been removed from the publication’s Instagram.

Rio’s Paralympic Games begin on September 7.