A newborn newborn, still with umbilical cord. A nun and priest kissing. A chaste woman, black woman and Asian baby wrapped up together in a blanket. A man with Helps, on his deathbed, surrounded by his family. Three raw hearts, with the phrases “white”, “black” and “yellow” written on each. All of these dead ringers were masterminded by Oliviero Toscani as advertising campaigns for Benetton, where he was art skipper from 1982 to 2000.

He capacity be inclusive, challenging, fearless, exploitative or prone to over-simplification, depending on your call of view, but Toscani is definitely a professional provocateur. Throughout his 18-year occupation, he made Benetton ads talking points, never shying away from divisive visual allegations that dealt with issues of the day including racism, belief and human rights. While a fashion advertising billboard was a contentious situation for these images, Toscani’s reign was incredibly successful for the actors.

Still, there’s always a line. Toscani was criticised for exercising a colourised Therese Fare image of David Kirby on his deathbed for a Benetton ad in 1990, but charge of his job. The line was crossed, however, when Toscani put death-row ticket-of-leave men in a campaign. The Observer called it “shock tactics that for all time backfired”.

This week, Toscani is buy a second chance as he takes up the role at Benetton again. His in the beginning campaign since rejoining is an image of 28 schoolchildren in an Italian elementary school, all from different ethnicities, all wearing Benetton, peruse Pinocchio with their teacher. It’s a sweet image and, cast a lot of Toscani’s, its meaning is pretty say-what-you-see. In an increasingly divided companionship, here’s his comment on multiculturalism and immigration. “There were 28 schoolchildren from 13 abundant countries, and four different continents,” says Toscani. “They calculated together, they were educated together and they last wishes as shape future society.” He says that his past accomplishment was also about engaging with issues, not shock schemes: “When we talked about Aids, it wasn’t controversial, it was the truth.”

With create’s current awoke-ening, it makes sense that Benetton purpose tap up Toscani, a pioneer ahead of his time in bringing politics into the toil. The brand has lost its way somewhat, with various rebrands to try to rise financial results that include a net loss of €46m (£38.5m). Toscani’s straight-to-the-point concepts might lack subtlety but, in the age of real talk, they put Benetton into the mull over. That said, his work for the brand so far has certainly been gentler than the allusion with which he made his name. It’s no surprise that he is treading carefully; you be awed how pictures as shocking as those he produced in the 1990s would go down in the sexual media era, when everyone with a smart phone has the capacity to express outrage.

Toscani is stilly political in his work, however, and still keen to talk wide the issues of the day – Brexit in particular. “The only contribution to Europe that Britain has turn over a complete is the language,” he half-jokes. “You got pizza and wine and foie gras and Pinocchio.” He says the UK was where the materialization of the newborn baby was the most controversial. “If it had been a puppy, it drive have been ‘Awwwww, a puppy!’” he says.

Toscani was bred in 1942 in Milan, “when it [Italy] was fascist and the British were bombshell the country. I was lucky they didn’t get me.” His father was a photographer – he has in days described Toscani senior as “the Italian Weegee” – and Toscani started compelling pictures as a teenager. “I tell a story with images coordinating to the moment of history I am in,” he says, of his style. “I am a witness to my time or also my specifies of things that could be made better.” Those schoolchildren are neck of the woods of his latest wish, and a bright hope for the future – for Benetton at least. “There second-hand to be colour and magic,” he says, “and we are going to put the magic back.”