Models & Personality? OMFG!

The Supers

Where did all the models go? No seriously, where did they all strut off and leave to? Every time I browse the newsstands it seems the only faces I see smiling back at me are ones of actresses. The Jennifer's, Halle's and Reese's have dominated all the September issues this fall leaving not a chance for a Daria, Jessica, Carmen or Coco in sight. Where did the days of the Supers go? The days when household names weren't just actresses but Cindy, Naomi, Linda and Christie! Now those women were Supers....supermodels I mean, in the truest sense of the word: they were curvy (okay, maybe not curvy by normal standards but curvy compared to the stick norm that exists today), divalicious, extravagant and ridiculously glamorous all the while doing their jobs well...and demanding no less than ten grande a day to step one dainty foot out of bed. (As uttered by Linda and thereby creating the most legendary of all fabulously spoiled lines.) The Supers set the standard for which all divas followed; a world where models were celebrities and personified the very alluring, glittery lifestyles they depicted in haute couture ads.
Those were the eighties and early nineties and since then, the role of the model has evolved. Except for Gisele, who briefly resurrected the supermodel craze and managed to find an audience beyond fashion groupies, the biggest models in the world are, for the most part, unknown. Sure, you have celebrities like Heidi Klum who are recognizable to even the most style-deprived of housewives in middle America, but, though she started off as a model, Klum rose to her star wattage by becoming a businesswoman and probably even more so for marrying Seal and popping out a whole litter of insanely cute kids. To put it mildly; she's not known for lounging on red velvet sofas in Paris covered in furs, she's known for lounging in Beverly Hills playgrounds covered in baby spit-up. Huge difference. So why the change in model persona recently? It may be as simple as the age of the diva has passed. Professionalism has made its return to the industry and models nowadays are more likely to succeed if they're on time, easy to work with, and energetic and opposed to hungover, cell-phone throwing and (more than) fashionably late. It is very much a job to the new breed of top models who don't necessarily know who YSL is and why he was a legend, but will gamely pose for the newest YSL campaign. Such a mentality has its benefits for the fashion world, namely a crop of eager-to-work models who know they're easily replaceable..but where's the glamor in that?
Yes, I'm a professional too when I'm on the job, but some times I think how much sheer fun it would of been to be a top model in the decade of decadence, i.e. the eighties. Call me a glutton for glitz but seriously, how awesome would it of been to roll up to parties in the south of France on the late Versace's arm and then roll into a campaign shoot the next day in the same clothes all the while getting paid what can only be described as offensively large amounts of money for some one to take pictures of you? Nothing short of glam glam glam. My admitted superficiality aside, the working girl models of today are refreshingly modest and pushing the industry forward with their work ethic and momentum, which is not exactly glamorous but a welcome change for many.
All this professionalism is not without its downsides, and as working girls the personalities of top models doesn't exactly shine through the dress-up roles they portray in ads and editorials. Kate Moss may be the last Super whose name alone is a brand within itself, with her popular line at Topshop continually selling out each season. On the flip side, top Canadian model (and my personal favorite) Daria Werbowy has landed countless major campaigns, walked every top runway and has her flawless face posted on every other billboard worldwide, yet there is no style, look, or persona attached to her name. She is a chameleon who merely lends her face and body out to sell the clothes she's wearing in pictures. Meanwhile, actresses have filled the void of the Supers and themselves have become international brands shilling everything from Versace to Japanese colas. It's not about what bodies designer clothes look best in, but instead about what lifestyle and personalities are associated with the star who is wearing them. For a consumer to see Madonna in all her airbrushed glory posing for Versace is to see all the edginess, agelessness and continual transformation Madonna stands for in Versace's line as opposed to seeing nothing but exquisite clothes hanging off an exquisite body.
I guess the answer to where all the models have gone is quite simple: to the insides of the magazines. Covers are flat-out dominated by actress-brands and even campaigns are using mainstream celebrities more and more. (James Franco for Gucci? Really? The Green Goblin?!) While I get this is all to boost sales, I miss the days when a cover meant an amazingly flawless model working her angles in fierce poses all the while wearing some extravagantly unwearable outfit and looking sultrily unattainable while doing so....in other words fashion for the sake of fashion.
Fashion, like anything else in the world, is prone to cycles and repeating history. The time of the Supers may have come and gone in the eighties but there is sure to be a resurgence of lively, glamorous models who want to make a splash for being themselves and not just mannequins. Socially responsible it may not be, but to be a Super sure looked like a hell of a time and I for one would warmly welcome a new era of frivolous fashion for no other reason than to be extravagant, spontaneous and ultimately glam, glam and more glam.
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