Thursday, November 18, 2010

MODEL MUST READ

Being a model in the fashion industry myself, this article really stuck a chord with me.

Im also studying media advertising and journalism in school and this really opened my eyes to a whole new perspective.

I'd love to hear your thoughts in the comments below.

The Will Be Celina

TAKEN FROM MODEL RESOURCE.COM

PT Editor Kaja Perina writes “… the media do not, by and large, create our obsession with beauty; our judgements come factory-installed. A world without Gossip Girl and glossy magazines would still produce teenagers who size up one another and abhor their own appearance.”

In other words, people need to stop blaming the fashion industry for how they see themselves. Humans are programmed from birth to want to look a certain way, and societal projections play only a small part in how we perceive ourselves physically.

This is where I come back to Lauren Chan. This morning, when I logged on to Twitter, this popped up in my mentions:

uhoh get ready 4 every1 from @modelresource to @nytimesstyle to comment on how skinny crystal renn got! look: http://www.sansmesculottes.com

@lcchan

Psychology Today

Psychology Today, December 2010

Heterosexual males are programmed to appreciate a somewhat curvy, athletic body. Genetically we’re hardwired to like a female frame that looks healthy; a toned, hourglass figure, symmetrical features, big eyes, full lips, etc.

Females instinctively know this is how men are programmed, and that – much more than product-pushing magazines – is why we have lip stain, push-ups bras and Spanx.

If Crystal Renn prefers being thinner, it’s not for anyone but possibly her physician to counsel otherwise. This new look she’s sporting isn’t the result of some crash diet. I met her when she did Joe Fresh‘s show in March, and even then backstage buzzed about how she would not be plus-size by Toronto standards. Full figured? Maybe… but far from size 14.

Personally, I like the way Renn looks in the new Harper’s Bazaar. It might not be popular to suggest, but it would be dishonest for me to say otherwise. And lest anyone accuse me of preferring to keep models really thin, remember: I’m a straight dude, very happily married to a woman with curves, and anyone who knows me can tell you how deliriously drawn I am to Emily.

The pages of PT are filled with reasons to put effort into your appearance. Being human is not shallow, and all the brain washing messages about the irrelevance of being attractive goes against the most basic, ingrained, programmed-from-birth human nature. Dove‘sCampaign for Real Beauty” may have told women to love themselves for who they are, but it also sold thigh firming cream to reduce the appearanceof cellulite. In countries where darker skin is seen less favourably, Dove offered up skin whitening cream. For all their seemingly altruistic feel-goodiness, the folks at Dove know insecurity sells and with the right prompting consumers will eagerly buy self-esteem-in-a-cream.

Crystal Renn literally became a poster-girl for being beautiful as a larger woman, just as Sophie Dahldid years before (before she too, famously dropped a bunch of inches). What I’m curious about now, is whether mainstream fashion magazines will pick up a straight-sized Renn’s story when she is undoubtedly going to get labelled a sell-out by many.

Is this good for her career? I don’t know. I just hope she’s happy when she looks in the mirror because for all the fame she’s achieved in the past, for all the different dress sizes she’s donned, for all the articles that have analyzed her role in how fashion feels about larger women, she should never be martyred for how other women feel about themselves.

Dan Grant, Publisher

Full Article Here: http://modelresource.wordpress.com/2010/11/18/publishers-opinion-crystal-renn/