It's nice to see diversity being a major talking point amongst people in the industry. In 10 Magazine, casting agent Daniel Peddle discusses why ethnic girls are starting to dominate the runways. While it's long been said that runways need to reflect real life, since, afterall, real people aren't all 5'11'' Caucasian women, one point that isn't discussed is the possibility that many designers are being guilt-tripped into working with ethnic girls.
This summer, Vogue Italia dedicated an entire issue to girls of 'black' descent. Dubbed 'The Black Issue', this was one of the most prominent arguments that there is not enough diversity on the runways. Certain websites have even begun tallying the number of ethnic girls seen on runways, in editorials, and advertisements (or the lack thereof). Clearly, in these uncertain times, no designer, brand, label, or otherwise, wants to be seen as out of touch with what concerns their consumers have. A very progressive consumer may be less inclined to spend money at a store with a reputation of not being diversity-conscious.
An example might be F/W 2008 Prada show. Nary an ethnic girl had been seen on a Prada runway in years, yet Jourdan Dunn was look number 13. Not only has an ethnic girl not strutted down a Prada runway, for up to the previous 7 seasons, Sasha Pivovarova was dominating their campaigns. Sasha is an other-wordly blonde haired, blue eyed girl from Moscow, a look that Miuccia has been credited with ushering in a few years ago. While Jourdan Dunn is, in her own right, an absolutely gorgeous girl, what was Miuccia Prada thinking when she decided to cast Dunn? Did she just fall head over heels for Jourdan like most of the industry did upon meeting her? Or, did Miuccia feel pressured into having a diverse cast, even though one black girl in a show is not a concrete argument that their views on diversity have changed.
While some might argue that the intentions for including a black girl in their show is a moot point, I argue that change will only come when people FEEL that they are doing the right thing, and not because they fear the consequence of being labeled as 'out of touch'.
Left: Jourdan Dunn from Prada F/W 08 Right: Sasha Pivovarova from a Prada campaign ad
Following the notion that the Supermodels are back.. Naomi Campbell graces the December '08/January '09 issue of Mixte. Fresh off a Yves Saint Laurent campaign, it's quite clear that Naomi is back at the top of her game.
In the sea of pale, baby-faced European girls, it's always refreshing to see a strong face such as Marina Peres (IMG).
