New rules carry more weight for models as Milan launches age, health crackdown
MILAN: Call it a license to runway.
In the latest industry move to combat eating disorders and the influence of ultrathin body types, models in Milan will need a license to walk the runway next season, if Italy's Chamber of Fashion has anything to say about it.
The license will guarantee that the model is healthy and will be issued by a committee comprising city officials, the Chamber of Fashion, the Association of Fashion Services, a scientific committee, which includes a group of doctors, nutritionists, psychologists and other experts. The license is just one of the issues of the "ethical code of self-regulation" that was presented to the press recently by the Camera della Moda and the mayor of Milan, Letizia Moratti.
"This is a code of self-regulation," said Moratti, "and it is connected to those lifestyles that lead to social diseases. The risk is that we are not protecting the health of the models and the impact on the young adolescents who see models as a reference point to achieve beauty."
According to the code, models will have to be at least age 16. Also, the code plans to comply with a Body Mass Index of 18.5, set by the World Health Organization. However, the Italian code takes into account geographical and ethnic factors that may define different body types.
The ethnic-geographic consideration had been overlooked by Spanish fashion industry officials, who last season banned superskinny models from the Madrid runways. Madrid was both ridiculed and praised when it gained headlines around the world by drawing attention to the connection between fashion and the risks of eating disorders by reinforcing the World Health Organization's Body Mass Index.
The issue continued to gain attention after the death of 21-year-old Brazilian model Ana Carolina Reston from anorexia.
In addition to validating a license to model, the ethical and scientific committees plan to promote a greater variety of sizes on the runway and to put fashion shows on par with athletic competitions, thereby reinforcing the need for a healthy eating habits and techniques to fight stress. The committees plan to introduce nutrition courses and balanced physical activities in modeling schools. "We will also evaluate the production of shoots done outside Italy, for example, and see if they are in line with the code's principles to be distributed in Italy," said Moratti, adding that intense marketing and communications are also planned to promote a message of well-being and health.
Although Mario Boselli, head of the Chamber of Fashion, underscored that "this is only a starting point," the code will start to regulate fashion shows in February. "This is not a revolution, but (the code) marks the first steps of future changes," said Boselli.
Giovanna Melandri, the Italian minister for sports activities and youth-driven programs, held her own press conference in Rome last Friday to present her manifesto, a nationwide campaign in Italy against anorexia with support from designers, top brands, modelling agencies and photographers that will seek to ban the use of emaciated models in advertising and on the catwalks.
"I'm sorry to say this sounds a lot like a way to get votes," said designer Roberto Cavalli. "I don't think the code will change fashion, and fashion is not the cause of juvenile problems," he said. "There are other ways to take care of our young generation: Stop showing half-naked starlets on television, ban silicone implants if one is not at least 25, for example," said Cavalli. As for the models' age limit, the designer agreed with the code. "I never have models who are too young, in fact, I would even raise the age to 18."
Robert Ferrell, director of Parisian modeling agency Marilyn Agency, lauded Italy's move to ban pre-16 models from the runway. "It's not right to put kids into an adult environment," said Ferrell, adding that despite France having introduced the same age restriction, certain fashion houses will always find ways around it. He also welcomes the debate on the "ongoing issue" of models and their weight, declaring fashion should be a healthy industry.
In the United States, the fashion community's strategy to respond to the model debate is being spearheaded by the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA) and its president, Diane von Furstenberg. She and Anna Wintour, editor in chief of Vogue, arranged an initial meeting with designers Vera Wang and Derek Lam, industry leaders and several health professionals on the issue earlier this month.
"I don't imagine we would go down the route of that kind of enforcement," said Steven Kolb, executive director of the CFDA. "Ours would be more about healthy recommendations for working with models and working collectively with all the industry to follow those regulations."
New York Times Syndicate
(China Daily 01/05/2007 page19)
