DIVIDED by Ellis Moffet

DECEMBER 2014

“DON’T LOOK AT THE CALENDAR, JUST KEEP CELEBRATING EVERYDAY” -- RUTH COBAN, 100 YEARS OLD

IS FASHION ERASING THE ELDERS?

Women signs taken signs

have become obsessed with erasing the of aging. Now, it seems that fashion has it one step further, and is erasing the of aging women altogether.

Youth and beauty are idolised so much within the fashion industry that age is seen as the demon, and if you’re over a certain age you are irrelevant. Where does it state that once a woman reaches 50 must she grip her Marks and Spencer’s camel moccasin slippers, and forget all about fashion? Or that once a man reaches 60 he must throw away his leather jacket, and replace it for a more respectable housecoat? Fashion is on the constant search for youth, and many fashion houses will take it to the next level and hire pre-pubescent models. French Vogue published a shoot with Thylane Blondeau who was only ten years old, causing a great stir within the media. Many people were shocked that a young girl was made to dress and model so provocatively, with full makeup and stilettoed shoes. Would the editorial have got so much publicity if the model were in her 20’s? Or nearing 50? Models appear to be getting younger and younger, with

Hailee Steinfeld as the 2011 face of their brand, at Marc Jacobs, 13-yearold Elle Fanning was cast in their latest campaign. Anti-wrinkle advertisements claim that they are targeting the ‘older women’. These same companies Photoshop the wrinkles from the model’s face. Rossalyn, 68, believes “anti-wrinkle creams don’t work, it’s more about acting young… I don’t think my age group is represented well [in the advertisments]. They use young models that definitely DO NOT need the creams!” Why can’t women age gracefully, and show wrinkles? Why must they erase all signs of ageing to be deemed fashionable and relevant? Against the trend, American Apparel introduced 62-year-old Jacky O’Shaughnessy into their ads. The brand received praise for using an older model. Positive comments included, “Thanks for exposing people’s prejudices, American Apparel,” “Proud of AA representing something other than half

and “This woman is fabulous.” However there was a backlash; with comments like,“Just goes to support the well established saying that anyone over the age of 25 should keep their clothes ON!” and “Sexy DOES have an expiration date!” Timothy GreenfieldSanders created an impelling documentary for HBO that captures the once youthful and in-demand models that reigned between 1940s and 1980s. “About Face: The Supermodels, Then and Now” stared fashion’s muses such as Christy Turlington Burns, Jerry Hall, Christie Brinkley, Isabella Rossellini, and Carmen Dell’Orefice. Models1 said of Carmen, she was “Always the exception to the rule” that older models were never alluring within fashion. The documentary shared their secrets and thoughts on models getting plastic surgery to stay looking full of life allowing them to remain “on the books”. Isabella disagrees with surgery, saying “Why don’t we accept what is natural?

I don’t think I’ll do it…. Of course we are aging. It’s natural and it’s beautiful” The average age of the Vogue reader is 33-years old. Should editors not focus on the age group of their readers? They advertise high fashion brands within their magazine, targeting the higher income groups, but the models used in their shoots are not from this genre, meaning there is confusion over who the target audience is – is it the high flyer or the younger model? Many fashion insiders question whether girls so young could convincingly sell clothes to grown women. With so many talented and older models, why are fashion houses neglecting elders, and striving for youth? Is it right that women who haven’t even lived half their lives are being dismissed because they no longer have pre-adolescent smooth faces? Is today’s fashion industry completely missing the point by focusing only on younger models, or can we reverse this seemingly common trend before its too late?

DIVIDED