American model Karlie Kloss has received her fair share of criticism in the past about her weight, and her latest editorial photoshoot in Japanese magazine Numéro has sparked even more controversy. The 20-year-old model’s ribs have been airbrushed to look less prominent in the photos – shot by photographer Greg Kadel for the October issue of the magazine.

Grag Kadel was shocked to see that his original work had been so dramatically altered. His studio released the following statement, “It was Greg's desire to represent Karlie as she naturally is... slender, athletic and beautiful. That is why he released the images as he intended them to be seen by the public. He is shocked and dismayed that unbeknownst to him, Numéro took it upon themselves to airbrush over his original images. Greg stands by his original artwork and cannot stress enough that he not only was unaware of the magazine's retouching but also finds the airbrushing of Karlie unacceptable and unnecessary. (sic)”

The editors of Numéro magazine’s decision to airbrush out Kloss’ ribs may have been a pre-emptive move after her appearance in Vogue Italia’s photoshoot by Steven Meisel last December sparked heated debates around the world – the images of a skeletal Kloss were posted on pro-anorexia websites.