It's been a good month for some black models in magazines but so far that upswing hasn't carried over onto the runway yet.
All eyes are on Paris now where designers are presenting their Fall 2008 collections but once again very few of those elegantly tailored pantsuits and cage dresses are resting on the bodies of black models. According to designers Jean-Paul Gaultier and Mario Lefranc, agencies just don’t have any black models at the moment. "I asked the modeling agency for black girls for our next show but there simply aren't any," said Lefranc.
Is it just me? Or do you wonder where these people are looking when they claim that they can’t find any black models? I subscribe to a thread @ TheFashionSpot devoted to new black faces and could honestly name a few dozen off the top of my head that have the look but don't seem to get the work. And honestly, what kind of an agency tells a client they can’t find any and leaves it at that? An agency can find black models the same way they find white ones, by leafing through comp cards; scouting or at open calls. Seriously, look for the tall slouching girl with the good skin, and high cheekbones and introduce yourself. It’s not rocket science.
And let me add this, as much as I really like to see black women on the runway I am hoping that designers don’t go the P. Diddy and D-Squared route and host a one off segregated show featuring only black models. To me responses like this miss the whole point, it’s never been about segregation.
Source: Style.com and EUR