18+ modeling rule gaining momentum after #MeToo
It’s hard to imagine the world of high fashion without younger models.
Who can forget Brooke Shields, then 15, modeling Calvin Klein jeans and a low-cut shirt for the brand’s 1980 campaign? Or Kaia Gerber, 16, walking alongside her doppelganger (and mother) Cindy Crawford in Versace’s spring 2018 fashion show in Milan?
The fashion industry has long depended on teen models who can fit into smaller sample sizes and hop on a plane to crisscross the globe for the next job.
But the modeling careers of children and teenagers can be far from glamorous. Many are separated from their parents for months and subjected to cramped living conditions and 12-hour or longer workdays with other models in unfamiliar countries.
These are only some of the dangers of being a young model, Maya Singer writes in “Why the Fashion World Needs to Commit to an 18+ Modeling Standard,” in Vogue’s September issue.
Singer’s piece comes seven months after Conde Nast, Vogue’s publisher, announced a new global vendor code of conduct, which stipulates that “all models on set must be 18 years old,” unless they are the subject of an article, in which case “they must be accompanied by an agencyprovided chaperone.”
In its announcement, Conde Nast notes that it began working on an update to its code of conduct in October, following The New York Times’ report exposing decades of sexual harassment allegations against producer Harvey Weinstein. Singer further notes in her article that the update was a response by Conde Nast to stories of widespread sexual assault and harassment of male and female models on editorial shoots.
The code also addresses issues of nudity, harassment, privacy and manipulation of models in the workplace. Subjects are no longer allowed to be left alone with any staff member on set, and they are now required to have a private dressing space.
Some casting agencies are following suit, implementing higher age restrictions for its models. Starting this month, DNA Models and The Society Management will no longer cast models under 18 for runway shows in North America (DNA Models will continue to cast underage models who’ve previously walked in Fashion Week).
Other agencies have not taken action since the announcement. Ford Models continues to cast models as young as 16 but expressed support for Vogue’s decision. “We agree that the fast-paced fashion industry isn’t suited for all ages,” said Michelle Hu, a Ford representative.
Steven Kolb, the president and CEO of the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA), told Singer he “supports the recommendation of raising the minimum age.” Under his leadership, the CFDA established a 16+ standard on the runway 11 years ago.
Others fear the new restrictions are not enough to protect young, impressionable models from the psychological consequences of the constant criticism models face.
“It’s not easy for adult women to face constant scrutiny of their bodies, so we can only imagine how this scrutiny (in the industry) affects young women, barely 18, before they’ve developed the resources, assertiveness, support to fight back when they feel they’re being mistreated,” Renee Engeln, a psychology professor at Northwestern University, says.
Engeln is also concerned about the unrealistic standard casting agencies set for their audiences when they use younger models, even those 18 and slightly older.
The hope, Singer concludes, is that the 18+ initiative will encourage people to re-evaluate how the industry treats models and do better. “Promising teens will continue to be signed, no doubt, but agencies will need to invest more time and resources in their models’ development,” she writes.