Style Editor India Harrison-Peppe explains the latest trend of 'wokeness' in fashion, revealing that it is no longer enough to simply be beautiful, models must also be socially aware.
‘I can do anything you want me to do so long as I don't have to speak.’ Sounding more like a line from 50 shades of grey, this is a direct quote from supermodel Linda Evangelista. You might, like me, read a statement like this and squirm. In an era of Jameela Jamils’, Lena Dunham’s, Michelle Obama’s and Caitlyn Moran’s, we are constantly hearing from multi-faceted, career driven, empowered women, so much so that a statement so unapologetically submissive seems almost perverted; Especially considering the context of our current zeitgeist 'call-out' culture condemning anyone not sufficiently ‘woke’. You can’t, however, condemn Evangelista for her passivity: this is what society once expected of models. The nineties golden age of modelling was an era where such women were seen everywhere and heard nowhere. In their heyday Naomi Campbell & Kate Moss were icons for a generation that prided itself on unabashed hedonism and cool Brittania glamour, apart from the occasional controversial quote - ‘nothing tastes as good as skinny feels’ they were slaves to the motto ‘never complain, never explain’. PC to them meant personal chef.
However, the model ‘off duty’ is quickly becoming a thing of the past. Once, only idolised for their unique beauty, these elusive creatures have now evaporated into the ether and are replaced by a host of beautiful women who have moved beyond the realm of the aesthetical and into that of activism. Female models are speaking out on some of the most topical issues in current affairs to date: but not everyone’s happy about it. It’s a trajectory that is pretty unsurprising, and one that is indebted to our generation’s fixational use of social media. Instagram has been a revelation for those of us who are self-proclaimed ‘stalkers’, digging as deep as we possibly can into the lives of those we aspire to be. With platforms like Instagram, the model ‘off duty’ has disappeared. There is a marketing strategy to it now that is engendered by these sites; these women must promote themselves in such a way that we wholeheartedly invest ourselves in their lives. In an industry where being quizzed on followers is protocol to being picked up by an agency, it’s heartbreakingly apparent that having an audience is now a pre-requisite for success; how they then use these platforms is imperative to the longevity of it.
Enter in the ‘woke’ model: a gaggle of entrepreneurs, writers, feminists and animal activists. Being a model is no longer the end goal - it’s a certified pathway to bigger and better things, and these women are making real change. Adwoa Aboah and Cara Delevigne, for instance, have both opened up recently about their experiences with addiction and depression. Edie Campbell has written an open letter condemning model abuse in the wake of Harvey Weinstein allegations, and Cameron Russel created the hashtag #MyJobShouldNotIncludeAbuse in an attempt to encourage women to talk out against misconduct experienced in the industry. It’s a story of social media success. The outlets chastised for making people feel worse about themselves are beginning to be seen as a method through which change can be brought about - a stepping stone on the road to a better world. Where value was once deducted by hip measurements and the symmetry of a face, these women are now assessed by their ability to champion change. We are witness to another gender stereotype being demolished in the realisation that - shock horror - it is indeed possible for women to be both beautiful and intelligent.
It is a sad state of affairs when people feel the need to devalue model activism, merely because we cannot accept that they are as entitled as the next person to have an opinion on the current state of our world. However, it is true that their choice to speak out does not detract from the fact that many of these women are speaking from places of privilege. They generally come from financial success, from a position of which speaking out on political and social issues does not threaten their livelihood nor, more importantly, their lives for that matter. Yet if the majority of these women have followings within the hundreds of thousands (if not more), why not use this space for a worthy cause?
Jameela Jamil’s recent attack of the company ‘Flat Tummy Co’ has provoked this particular kind of debate online. It seems that ‘internet trolls’ have a tough time bringing themselves to hear the opinion of those in the public eye simply because they do not represent the ‘everyman’ (or ‘everywoman’ in this case). With social media meaning that we now have Big-Brother-esque access to the ins-and-outs of everyone’s lives, it seems that the public feels it can only side with the opinion of those they find most relatable, excluding the voice of those that are unlike them. This is a new-fangled type of discrimination. In the example below, we have an Instagram user stating that she finds it ‘hard to accept an opinion’ from Jamil, simply because she is a slender and beautiful woman. It transpires that we are now in the position where we choose to silence those whose success and beauty we find intimidating. Please find another gripe; the cult of celebrity exists, now more than ever, and it is not going away overnight. When voicing these concerns about young women's exposure to unrealistic beauty standards, I urge people to consider that it is often the models that you are attacking who are criticising said expectations, as Jamil is managing to prove.
It is ignorant to assume that every movement made in the modelling industry is positive, and it’s clear that media coverage of unrealistic beauty standards is at the core of a lot of sadness and low self-esteem felt by society today. However, I propose that we dismiss our debilitating cynicism and see this opportunity for what it is. This change in the modelling industry means that for a group of women whose power already exists, they can influence the masses that currently dedicate their time and energy to them. The role of a model is assimilating into something else, something that is potentially more productive. This transformation has signalled the importance to redefine what activism means. It does not have to be an all-encompassing term that isolates anyone who does not fit a particular ‘social justice warrior stereotype’. Instead, it is the instinct to make things better, no matter how small and how large that may be. Over the last two decades, fixation on models has not dissipated. The question we must then ask ourselves: what is more productive? To condemn those who are having an effect on our society, or to embrace the ‘cult of the model’ and simply thank our lucky stars that the large majority are not advocating the use of appetite suppressant lollipops (cough-cough, we’re looking at you, Kim Kardashian). So, if ‘having a voice is what it is about at the moment’, as Hailey Baldwin put in a recent interview published by Vogue, then let’s roll with the punches - out with the old and in with the new- activism is, after all, the new black.
Featured Image: GurlsTalk/ www.gurlstalk.com
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