Paris Fashion Industry Needs a Little Color
Colorism, according to Wikipedia, is “a form of prejudice or discrimination in which people are treated differently based on the social meanings attached to skin color.”
Now that you have a dictionary definition of the word, let's unpack what value this has in the fashion industry, because it is 2016 and it is time to talk about it. We can all kid ourselves and say "it's getting better" and "there is so much more diversity in fashion now" but here are the facts. According to The Fashion Spot, out of the 373 fashion shows and 9,926 models that were in the New York, London, Paris, and Milan shows, 77.6% of these models were white. Really, out of the hundreds of casting calls, and not to mention the 3+ billion women in the world, less than 25% of models were of an ethnic minority? I'm not buying it. But, it's hard to ignore this when you hear about models of ethnic minorities trying to break into the industry.
Image Credit: Flickr/EvaRinaldi
Laomie Anderson, a 22-year-old Victoria's Secret Model said that although the industry has come a long way in regards to its diversity, it still has a long way to go. Even if those of an ethnic minority are able to "make it" into the modeling industry, they suffer from being unappreciated. In 2015, Sudanese model Nykhor Paul spoke about multiple makeup artists in the industry who wouldn't accommodate her because of her skin tone. They actually told her that she had to bring her own makeup because of the darkness of her skin. Paris especially has a little catching up to do.
Image credit: Flickr/AglairLopes
Paris, arguably the fashion capital of the world, has an issue diversifying their models within the fashion industry. In fact, in terms of the diversification of their models within fashion shows, Paris ranks consistently low in past Fashion Week shows. The problem is that designers have been all about celebrating and showcasing ethnic cultures as inspiration for their collections, but don't cast models that actually are the ethnicity they gain inspiration from. Balenciaga's creative director and Paris fashion favorite, Demna Gvasalia, is a prime example of this happening. As a designer who takes inspiration from the ethnic communities of Paris, Gvasalia definitely lacks in the diversity department when it comes to casting his models. Former model and founder of Models for Diversity, Angel Sinclair, claimed "that the omission was all the more 'shocking after the great strides at New York Fashion Week" which was ranked as the most diverse in terms of model casting.
Image Credit: Flickr/EvaRinaldi
So with Paris Fashion Week arriving, will we see designers being more culturally inclusive with their models? Or will we be struggling to find the ethnicities that designers claim to get their inspiration from?
