WORDS KATIE MACFADDEN
In September, Rick Owens created a stampede at Paris Fashion Week. Literally. He enlisted the help of dancers from four University step teams, and asked them to model his wares, whilst performing their powerful dance. Instructed to adopt fierce facial expressions, the models entered from the top of a metal scaffold. They were of all shapes, sizes and race, and proceeded to shock and enthrall the audience in their spirited defiance of the conventional catwalk. Owens expressed the sentiment at the heart of the performance, asking, “How do I make it accessible to everybody instead of making it an exclusive fashion world?”
The show was so powerful because it directly engaged with an issue that has been haunting the fashion industry. Kanye West recently launched an attack against the prejudices of culture, describing his experience of hitting a “glass ceiling” as a black musician, fashion designer and businessman. Earlier this year, Naomi Campbell, alongside activist Bethann Hardison and model Iman, set up The Diversity Coalition, which aims to draw attention to the lack of diversity in the fashion world. Reacting to the striking lack of black models at New York Fashion Week’s Fall and Winter shows, The Diversity Coalition named and shamed designers who used only white models, accusing them of perpetrating racist attitudes. A study on Jezebel revealed that in these shows, 82.7% of the models used were white.
The response to this campaign has been enormous. Designers such as Calvin Klein and Giorgio Armani have included unprecedentedly high numbers of black models in their runway shows, with Armani using a black model to open this year’s show at Paris Fashion Week. Prada was praised in July when 19 year old Kenyan Malaika Firth became the first black model to front the brand’s campaign since Campbell in 1994.
However, the significance of this 20 year gap is enormous, and serves to remind the industry that its supposed progress is moving too slowly, for it is not reflecting the reality of globalization. Therefore, although Firth’s cover of UK Vogue’s shopping supplement this November caused ripples of excitement, comparisons between her and Campbell sorely remind us that in the 70s and 80s black models were given infinitely more work than they are today.
In the wake of the civil rights movement, black models were praised and glorified, flooding catwalks and magazines alike, culminating in Italian Vogue’s “all black” edition. But as soon as people stopped raising their voices, whiter, blonder models resumed predominance in the industry. It is tempting to view the increase in black models as indicative of a move towards sustainable diversity in the fashion industry, but the fact remains, that there is a possibility that this current flux might be a trend, rather than a change.
This could be an example of the fashion industry doing what it does best — capitalizing on topical issues for commercial gain. Lagos is tipped to become a new fashion hot spot, and it is becoming renowned for its handcrafted garments, made with locally sourced fabrics that take inspiration from Nigerian tribal wear. Simon Burnstein, chief executive at Browns London explained, “These labels clearly have a tribal inspiration but don’t shriek Africa, so they fit into the Western wardrobe.” Evidently, catering for a Western wardrobe means the aesthetics need to resonate with Western culture at the expense of another tradition.
So long as fashion favours white models, the industry perpetrates a standard of international beauty that is white. The Diversity Coalition has called on the industry to recognize its profound ability and responsibility to “shape our young girls”, explaining that the inclusion of models of all skin colors is imperative, because “to see otherwise makes [young girls] feel like they can be ‘in or out’ of fashion”. But this exclusivity is a problem that resides in all aspects of the aesthetic ideals fashion creates. In a similar vein, so long as fashion favours size six models, it dictates an international beauty paradigm, which is a size six.
Fashion is an integral part of our society and culture and it is encouraging that recent fashion weeks have been a fairer reflection of the multi-cultural demographic of their host cities. If the surge in black models is a trend, perhaps we should just embrace it, because at least it is raising awareness, which should lead to definitive change. Let’s hope the industry giants use their staying power and have the will to keep raising their voices. This needs to be more than just another case of fast fashion, so the industry can set an example, and move towards racial equality.
