When you think of a model, you might think of the stereotypical look – slim, tall, and, of course, young. However, the face of modelling may be changing: this fashion month there were more over 50s on the catwalks than ever before.
That is according to Fashion Spot, which has just released its biannual diversity report, looking at the 8,832 models featured in the September and October fashion shows (featuring the spring and summer trends of 2017). When they broke down the models by categories such as race, size, and age, they found that this was the most diverse fashion month in history.
Despite this, however, it is clear that there’s still a long way to go before the world of modelling truly reflects the diversity of the real world; and while there has been progress in getting older models on the runway, body diversity is still lagging behind. The report found that while New York Fashion Week had the most plus-size models in history with 16 models on the runways, that worked out at just 0.54% of overall castings. What’s more, there was not one plus-size model in London, Milan or Paris.
We want to hear from models and others in the industry about just how diverse they believe the modelling world is, whether there has been any progress in recent years and, if so, in what areas? What are the biggest challenges that today’s models face? How has social media made the job more (or less) difficult? What about male models? Do they face the same issues? Share your stories with us – anonymously or otherwise – in the form below.
