The October 1976 issue of Playboy Italia is historically significant for featuring a pictorial titled (Class of 1965), which showcased Eva Ionesco. This feature is widely cited as one of the most controversial episodes in the history of men's magazines due to the subject’s age. Eva Ionesco was born in 1965; consequently, she was 11 years old at the time of publication. The pictorial serves as a focal point for discussions regarding the sexualization of minors in 1970s media, artistic freedom versus child protection, and the legal battles that would follow decades later.
Ionesco has described her early years as a "stolen childhood," stating she never approved of the images and felt exploited by both her mother and the media industry.
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The publication occurred during a period in European media where the boundaries of artistic expression were frequently debated. Eva Ionesco’s appearance in these publications was part of a larger body of work initiated by her mother, photographer Irina Ionesco. These works have since been widely condemned by child advocacy groups and legal experts as clear instances of exploitation rather than artistic expression. The Role of Media and Photography
The phrase "classe del 1965" refers directly to Eva Ionesco's birth year, emphasizing her youth to the reader. Shot primarily by French photographer Jacques Bourboulon—known during that era for his sun-drenched, seaside photography—the pictorial depicted the 11-year-old completely nude on an empty terrace and along a beach close to the sea. Unlike the gothic, heavily styled baroque images concurrently being produced by her mother, Bourboulon’s images for Playboy utilized natural light to frame a child in a highly sexualized, adult presentation. The Complex Legacy of Irina Ionesco The pictorial serves as a focal point for
emphasizing the Mediterranean coastline.
However, the October 1976 issue crossed a definitive legal and ethical line by publishing images of Eva Ionesco, who was only 11 years old at the time of publication (having been born on July 18, 1965). "Classe del 1965": The Pictorial This link or copies made by others cannot be deleted
Ionesco launched multiple successful lawsuits against her mother and various media archives to halt the reproduction, sale, and exhibition of the photographs taken during her childhood.
The pictorial was photographed by Eva’s mother, the French photographer Irina Ionesco. The images continued the stylistic themes Irina was known for: a surrealist, Baroque, and often Gothic aesthetic.
The publication of these images, along with others taken by her mother between the ages of 4 and 12, led to decades of legal battles and a permanent change in how child protection is viewed in media: