Wednesday, October 04, 2006

Maybe it's semantics

So Gau.tier used a fat model while he simultaneously didn't buck using skinny ones. Are we supposed to be impressed?

What bothers me about it, well, there are a couple things...
  • Why do just one? Why isn't there a fat line of clothing by a runway guru? The operative words are line, meaning a variety of items, and clothing, meaning normal day/evening wear and I don't mean that kind of evening.
  • Why choose one so large? The article says she weighed almost 300 lbs. She doesn't represent me, either. What about the average, size 14?
  • Why say a 300 lb woman wears a size 20? Is this some sort of smoke screen? I was flirting with a 20 and weighed almost 100 lbs less. Maybe if I weighed in kilograms or stones it would come out differently?
  • Why have her as the only model wearing revealing lingerie when all the others wore sportswear? Is it the shock value? As stunningly beautiful as Dita is (I've had a girl crush for a while, but I do not share her taste in men), I don't understand how her attendance would be such a big (no pun intended) influence. [All links safe for work.]
  • Why can't I find the model listed anyplace else online? Velvet D'Am.our is not listed as an actress on IMDb and that picture seems to be the only picture publicized anywhere.
  • Is it not just a whim? Is it more of a ploy? Check out this wallpaper where Ga.utier actually uses cartoon fat women to help sell couture.
What do you think? Are inclusion and diversity the real issues or is it fat exploitation? Or just plain attention hounding?

5 comments:

Klynn said...

At work, so I didn't click on all the links. But just from what you said, it sounds like they were going for the shock value. Tacky IMHO.

BTW, I am 5'-6", weigh 225, and I wear a size 20. My mom is 5'-2", is pushing 300 lbs, and wears a size 26-28. If they said that someone 300 lbs was wearing a size 20, they were lying out their a$$.

Cricket said...

I thought to put it and forgot - I used safe for work pics of Dita. The first link is a bio that is interesting.

The only thing I can consider with the sizing is that designer sizing runs large compared to off the rack. You know why? A pattern is made, then in order to use less cloth, the pattern is crumpled/wrinkled, thus made smaller when spread back out. Makes no sense to me, but I am clueless about the sophisticated nuances of business.

DD said...

No matter what they say a size is during a show, it's bogus. Usually the designer has an idea of what he wants to show, picks his models, and then creates the piece based specifically on that one model. That's why they go ape-shit when a model can't make it. That particular piece usually does not make it onto the runway.

I don't necessarily agree with how he used the model, but I understand why. With the big furor about skinny models, who unrealistically are emulated by young girls, the public wants them banned. It then becomes subjective. What is "skinny"? What is "fat"? There's no doubt that the main objective to a show is to sell the clothes and the best way to sell the clothes is on a walking hanger. If kids are trying to look like the model, then the designers don't care b/c they figure those are the people who missed the point of the show. It's not to show off the bodies (unless it's Victoria's Secret), it's to show off the clothes.

Val said...

I'm w/Klynn -- @ 5'7" & pushing 220, I wear 18 or 20 in most things (18 on the bottom, and a 20 on top to accommodate my "small tits" -- snort! ;-)

Anonymous said...

velvet's website:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/velvet_vixen

velvet on IMDB

http://imdb.com/name/nm2158844/

Velvet was at Cannes Film Festival and starred in AVIDA. posters of her large body are all over Paris .