Post-operative shock, or chic?
Just another day in the life of a Vogue Paris reader?
Imagine you got booked for Tom Ford's French Vogue.
Yippee.
But there's a sting in the tail.
The pictures are not of an unadorned, beautiful natural you.
I guess it's complicated.
(I know I said I wouldn’t post on her any more, but heigh ho. I am flighty, and change my mind, on occasion)
The fetishisation (is there such a word? No? Oh dear. Sorry.) of Crystal Renn continues.
Now, in this shoot by Tom Ford, for December’s Vogue Paris – which he guest-edited – it appears the industry’s current fascination with this model has moved from her weight, to her looks, in a more general sense.
As an example of the fashion and beauty psyche at work this shoot is a fascinating, thought-provoking piece of satire. It is also a brilliant comment on the sad-masochistic * relationship women have with this kind of magazine. (I wonder whether the readers of Vogue believe this particular joke is on them?)
While it is only very tangentially about fashion, it is about the fashion industry and, viewed from the outside, it’s above all, black comedy.
A Terry Gilliam movie in print.
But is it funny for my favourite model?
That’s complicated.
Here she is, in the world’s most prestigious magazine, bandaged and battered, in every shot.
Here she is naked from the waist down.
Here she is with her lips artificially plumped and desecrated.
Here she is being man-handled, as an inanimate bundle of insecurity and vanity – an example of what “privilege” has come to mean in our society.
Oh, And plus, she continues to look very, very thin.
That she is not presented as a pretty sight, goes without saying.
Even a healthy woman might have issues making this particular Faustian deal: Want to appear in the most important magazine moment of the year? Pay the price, pretty girl.
Maybe it’s not meant to be so deep. It is “just fashion” after all.
Is Crystal Renn a very good sport, embracing the fun of it all, with her tongue firmly in her very hollow cheek?
A healthy adult woman would certainly be able to take part in a shoot like this, without suffering lasting damage. As always, I0 do hope that Ms Renn is now healthy, even while I harbour doubts.
I fear this shoot is pure blood sport for the Vogue Paris Editorial team – with foxy Crystal as the fox.
But I would think that, wouldn’t I?
* Yes, I meant sad.
Via Fashion Gone Rogue.
