Whilst everyone is beating up the modelling industry on the size zero subject (because it's fashionable to beat up the modelling and fashion industry), we should be insisting that Internet Service Providers (ISPS) must ban any site on the internet which encourages people to starve or harm themselves in any way.
All of us with our heads screwed on are very obviously worried about the pressure young girls and also young men now feel under each and every time they look at a cover of a lifestyle magazine. Having gone to 3 supermarket chains and 2 newspaper outlets in June 2007, I noted that it was very hard to find even ONE lifestyle magazine that did not have a diet or weight loss item on the front cover.
ALBA is contacted by teenagers stating their weight before anything else and that is cause for concern. As Catwalk trends are supposedly watched by young girls from age 11 upwards, I agree that the skinny zero size scenario in fashion and on the catwalks does carry the wrong message. But let us have some balance here as the modelling industry is not solely to blame.
Let us remember that in the history of fashion Catwalk Models have always been taller than average models and slender, remember Audrey Withers in the 1950's, TWIGGY in the 1960's, Jerry Hall in the 1970s, Naomi Campbell in the 1980s; but for any designer to deliberately set a skinny criteria for fully developed women is irresponsible and is somewhat misogynistic and would be removing any sign of femininity on the Catwalk full stop !
The fact that some "designers " insist that Catwalk models are a minute size even when they are of Amazonian height and should realistically be anything from a size 12 to a 14 only goes to show that they really are not as good at design as their vanity permits them think they are.
Gyvenchy, Yves Saint Laurent, Cocoa Channel, Lagerfeld, Oscar De la Renta as well as Gianni Versace were the designers that showed how much they loved women and wanted to flatter and give great style to the female figure, which included a bust and hips ! They designed clothing that both flattered femininity and sexuality as well as provided sharp and stylish designs for the working woman, along with todays designers such as Zandra Rhodes, Betty Jackson and Stella Mc Cartney. None were afraid of empowering the curved female form in fact they loved and celebrated it with corsets - so those designers that demand super skinny models had better take note !
I do very much bear in mind that when I was modelling at almost 6ft tall in the 1980's I was a 36-23-36; naturally as I had grown that tall at age 13 and despite a very healthy appetite I still remained slim and very fit as I as I swam and walked regularly (a lot of walking was around London going to castings), but I was fit and healthy and ate healthily.
Agencies have a duty of care to their models both male and female, and those agencies that have not done so to date are going to have to put their foot down and tell even the most demanding and petulant clients that some of their requests for certain sizes are unreasonable and therefore, are not going to be met.
It is far easier for an agency to state as many ALBA agencies do ; they will not take on any model age 16 and over that is 5ft8ins and taller under a size 8. This is far more workable than to put models under even more stress and demand they supply a private GP certificate from an eating disorder specialist, at a cost to the model in order to be accepted for an assignment. Especially when many at London Fashion Week are in fact working for very little or no pay just to get their faces "noticed" on the catwalk.
We should celebrate the female form, and those clients, designers etc; that set the rules for model agencies about what they want, please start insisting models look feminine and like a normal healthy and curvaceous woman. Since the majority of the female population that buy the clothes are in fact most likely to be size 14 if not a 16-18 !
Very much to balme are the web sites on the Internet that promote thinness- So those that govern the Internet have to make sure those web sites that have deliberately set up to encourage vulnerable young people to starve themselves are shut down and removed from the Internet for abuse !
The TV and media have themselves I fear become obsessed with size, the more we obsess on this the more we focus on size and make the whole thing worse. It saddens and worries me greatly the image that is being set and so it is time to put a stop to size Zero and that means it is time for the agencies to stop complying with the unreasonable demands of clients, the media to stop hyping it and also for Internet Service providers to stand up and be counted and ban starvation web sites !
Katie Froud
www.albamodel.info
The modelling industry watchdog
