Wednesday, October 14, 2009

The Plot Thickens

So it's being reported now that the model featured in Ralph Lauren's now infamous ad campaign was fired by Ralph Lauren months ago, allegedly for being overweight. As stated by Filippa Hamilton, the model featured in the heavily distorted ad:
[Her] contract was terminated in April because she was too heavy.

Polo Ralph Lauren said in a statement Tuesday night that Filippa is a "beautiful and healthy" woman but their relationship ended "as a result of her inability to meet the obligations under her contract with us."

In response, Hamilton said, "They fired me because they said I was overweight and I couldn't fit in their clothes anymore."

It's stunning to see the difference between a healthy Filippa...

and the grossly distorted image of her.

It's great -especially with all of the press and commentary related to the distorted image- to see Filippa's reaction to the ad:

"I think they owe American women an apology, a big apology," Hamilton said. "I'm very proud of what I look like, and I think a role model should look healthy."

Read more
Here is another image of Filippa from the 2005 Pirelli Calendar, shot by Patrick Demarchelier:
How could she be any less healthy than that? For all of Ralph Lauren's inconsistency...

A spokesman for Ralph Lauren said [Tuesday] night: ‘For over 42 years, we have built a brand based on quality and integrity.

‘After further investigation, we have learned that we are responsible for the poor imaging and retouching that resulted in a very distorted image of a woman’s body.

‘We have addressed the problem and going forward will take every precaution to ensure that the calibre of our artwork represents our brand appropriately.’

...I have to agree with Joanna Douglas:
It's awesome and empowering when stars admit they've been photoshopped for an ad or movie poster and say how dissatisfied they are about it. With foreign countries banning underweight models from their fashion weeks, and the increasing presence of "plus size" models in women's magazines, we wish the unhealthy representation and falsified depiction of models—and women—would come to an end entirely.
I think I can see that day arriving sooner than most people expect. Sure worth hoping for, don't you think?

No comments:

Post a Comment