Monday, September 18, 2006
commentary - fashion
So it's taken a weekend to sink in, this worldwide debate on the weight of catwalk models. London's Fashion Week has decided to NOT ban models with a BMI of less than 18.5, while Milan's mayor is still pushing for it. London's Fashion Week kicked off today, and Milan's kicks off next week.
While it is true that many of these catwalkers are indeed underweight (some BMI estimates being: Giselle at 18.2, Kate Moss at 16.9 and Elle McPherson at 17), we have to keep in mind the product they are modelling and the audience it is aimed towards. Just like writers must keep in mind their readership when coming up with ideas, fashion designers have to keep their buyers in mind when coming up with their seasonal lines.
Fact of the matter is that the majority of women in this world (such as the more-than-half of the American and British population that is overweight) do not and cannot build their seasonal wardrobes (if they even have seasonal wardrobes) from the selections displayed by Versace and Gucci at their couture runway shows. The world of high fashion is set apart because of its exclusivity - why would it want to compromise that by making it universally attainable?
Yes yes, the debate goes on to cite the ads in fashion magazines and how it encourages eating disorders. Yet our country is still majorly overweight. I agree that eating disorders are a serious problem, but it is rarely caused solely through the inundation of images of skinny models. I would argue that there are plenty of healthy women and girls out there that read these magazines regularly, maybe even obsessively, and still feel no pressure to look like them. Yes, psychologically speaking some people are more vulnerable to such images and the messages they send, but in the end, they're just advertisements saying "come buy my clothes" rather than "come look like me." In many of these ads the girls don't even look happy. I think they're hungry.
Another argument that has come up in several articles on the skinny model ban is that women themselves would begin criticizing models for having less than perfect figures. You know those women that snicker every time they see cellulite on another woman by the pool. Even those that have cellulite themselves will do so. Do women want to see people like themselves walking down the catwalks? They'd like to see prettier versions of themselves is more like it. Even plus-sized models are more beautiful than the average woman. With the cult of celebrity so bold and brazen in this age, why make it more accessible to more people? If women are already so critical of other women in the public spotlight, why give them more to criticize?
More importantly, what does BMI really show? For those out of the know, Body Mass Index is a measure of body fat based on height and weight for ADULTS (goodness knows why they made us take that test in high school). It does not take into account the weight or density of your bones. Most methods of calculation (especially the ones online) do not take into account muscle mass, which weighs more than fat. Bottom line: there are many things that BMI does not take into account that are important in accessing "skinny" versus "fat." Based on the calculation of my own numbers in Glamour's BMI calculator, Giselle and I only differ by 0.7 in our BMI. But will I ever look as svelte as her or could I ever walk the runway? Hell, no, for many reasons.
So far, the only people cheering on this movement are public officials. Designers surely are not on board (for more than the reasons specified above). Models are juggling the mixed messages from the public and their modelling agencies. So where does the public stand?
Truth: who really cares? We're not buying the clothes they model or going to these shows. The men in our lives surely are not keeping a close watch on the runways to make sure we're keeping up. There are many many many more problems in adolescent lives that we can help alleviate other than images of skinny models to prevent eating disorders. We can't blame it on them.
If you were told to lose 10 pounds and get paid millions of dollars for it, who wouldn't say yes?
While it is true that many of these catwalkers are indeed underweight (some BMI estimates being: Giselle at 18.2, Kate Moss at 16.9 and Elle McPherson at 17), we have to keep in mind the product they are modelling and the audience it is aimed towards. Just like writers must keep in mind their readership when coming up with ideas, fashion designers have to keep their buyers in mind when coming up with their seasonal lines.
Fact of the matter is that the majority of women in this world (such as the more-than-half of the American and British population that is overweight) do not and cannot build their seasonal wardrobes (if they even have seasonal wardrobes) from the selections displayed by Versace and Gucci at their couture runway shows. The world of high fashion is set apart because of its exclusivity - why would it want to compromise that by making it universally attainable?
Yes yes, the debate goes on to cite the ads in fashion magazines and how it encourages eating disorders. Yet our country is still majorly overweight. I agree that eating disorders are a serious problem, but it is rarely caused solely through the inundation of images of skinny models. I would argue that there are plenty of healthy women and girls out there that read these magazines regularly, maybe even obsessively, and still feel no pressure to look like them. Yes, psychologically speaking some people are more vulnerable to such images and the messages they send, but in the end, they're just advertisements saying "come buy my clothes" rather than "come look like me." In many of these ads the girls don't even look happy. I think they're hungry.
Another argument that has come up in several articles on the skinny model ban is that women themselves would begin criticizing models for having less than perfect figures. You know those women that snicker every time they see cellulite on another woman by the pool. Even those that have cellulite themselves will do so. Do women want to see people like themselves walking down the catwalks? They'd like to see prettier versions of themselves is more like it. Even plus-sized models are more beautiful than the average woman. With the cult of celebrity so bold and brazen in this age, why make it more accessible to more people? If women are already so critical of other women in the public spotlight, why give them more to criticize?
More importantly, what does BMI really show? For those out of the know, Body Mass Index is a measure of body fat based on height and weight for ADULTS (goodness knows why they made us take that test in high school). It does not take into account the weight or density of your bones. Most methods of calculation (especially the ones online) do not take into account muscle mass, which weighs more than fat. Bottom line: there are many things that BMI does not take into account that are important in accessing "skinny" versus "fat." Based on the calculation of my own numbers in Glamour's BMI calculator, Giselle and I only differ by 0.7 in our BMI. But will I ever look as svelte as her or could I ever walk the runway? Hell, no, for many reasons.
So far, the only people cheering on this movement are public officials. Designers surely are not on board (for more than the reasons specified above). Models are juggling the mixed messages from the public and their modelling agencies. So where does the public stand?
Truth: who really cares? We're not buying the clothes they model or going to these shows. The men in our lives surely are not keeping a close watch on the runways to make sure we're keeping up. There are many many many more problems in adolescent lives that we can help alleviate other than images of skinny models to prevent eating disorders. We can't blame it on them.
If you were told to lose 10 pounds and get paid millions of dollars for it, who wouldn't say yes?
# posted by ange : 10:43 AM
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i blogged about this too (http://journals.aol.com/neurp/travellog/entries/2006/09/30/thin-as-sin/1173). but basically, while i agree that while the fashion industry should do something about too thin models, i think a bmi of 18 is too high.
thing is, designers design clothes. and these clothes look better on people who show the lines and cut and said clothing. so yeah, thin models, they're just showing off the clothes better.
another thing, a lot of us are just naturally thin. you or me, for instance. while 18.5 is considered 'healthy' many of us fall under that number, altho not significantly under (which i think should be banned, say under 16).
also, as you pointed out, more than half of america is obese. and since obesity is a health problem just like anorexia shouldn't we be more focused on 'solving' that? yet we have plus sized models. it seems like it's okay to accomodate overweight people (we're making them feel beautiful, because they are!) it's not okay to do the same for underweight people. but doesn't beauty come in all sizes? if we're to ban models with bmi's even slightly under what's considered healthy then we should also ban those who are heavier.
thing is, designers design clothes. and these clothes look better on people who show the lines and cut and said clothing. so yeah, thin models, they're just showing off the clothes better.
another thing, a lot of us are just naturally thin. you or me, for instance. while 18.5 is considered 'healthy' many of us fall under that number, altho not significantly under (which i think should be banned, say under 16).
also, as you pointed out, more than half of america is obese. and since obesity is a health problem just like anorexia shouldn't we be more focused on 'solving' that? yet we have plus sized models. it seems like it's okay to accomodate overweight people (we're making them feel beautiful, because they are!) it's not okay to do the same for underweight people. but doesn't beauty come in all sizes? if we're to ban models with bmi's even slightly under what's considered healthy then we should also ban those who are heavier.
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