Did Crystal Renn have her eyes taped back for Japanese Vogue?

[tentalicious]

Did someone at an international Vogue conference issue a memo saying that controversy was in this month? Only last week we posted a story about how Italian Vogue had rechristened gold hoop earrings "Slave" earrings. Unsurprisingly, lots of you had much to say on the matter. Now it looks as if Japanese Vogue have picked up the controversy baton with the release of footage of model Crystal Renn having her eyes taped back during a shoot, possibly to give her a more "Asian" appearance.

We wonder what motives are going on here. Anna Dello Russo - cult stylist, creative consultant and editor-at-large at the Japanese title - presumably works with Japanese colleagues on a daily basis and, given the weeks of preparation that a Vogue shoot takes, Japanese editorial staff somewhere along the line cleared this idea. Would we have read this as something else - a visual comment on face-lifts, for example - had it been for, say, French Vogue?



As yet Vogue hasn't issued a response to criticism that it is "racially insensitive", or explained if the tape was for some purpose other than to distort Renn's eyes. There remains a fine line between pushing creative boundaries, courting controversy and causing downright offence. Where do you think this sits on the spectrum? Let us know.

[via guardian.co.uk]

 

[ad041715]

What the hell is going on lately regarding racial discrimination/generalizations? The fashion industry is seriously losing my respect.

 

[LUXXX]

Crystal takes part in a lot of shoots on the edge, so I'm not surprised.

 

[Marc10]

When i saw the video i though it was normal make up technique they used, since i've seen that in a lot of shoots and shows. Only now i realized, and if they did this just for her to look more "asian", it's quite pointless since for they rarely use asian models on the magazine.

 

[HeatherAnne]

Crystal has one eye that is distractingly bigger than the other -- if you don't believe me visit her thread, where it is mentioned every few pages. My hope is the tape is to conceal this fact more than it was to solely make her look more Asian.

 

[Ives927]

Pathetic. There is no denying what their intentions were. Want the model to look more Asian? Get an Asian model. I'm tired of the Asian culture being fetishized, rather than celebrated.

 

[Leeroi]

crystal renn certainly does know how to model. so much energy coming from her.

but yes, it seems as though the tape was used to pull her eye.

 

[1FashionVictim]

I think it's a bit too ambiguous to say they used that effect to make her look more Asian: nothing about the styling reads stereotypical Japanese fashion and I question whether anyone would comment if the editorial wasn't printed in an Asian publication, or if the model had blonde hair/blue eyes/etc.

If the intention was to make her look more like an Japanese woman, then I think it was totally unnecessary and they should have booked a model of Asian descent.

 

[fantastical]

Crystal has one eye that is distractingly bigger than the other -- if you don't believe me visit her thread, where it is mentioned every few pages. My hope is the tape is to conceal this fact more than it was to solely make her look more Asian.

I agree, Crystal's eyes can go quite wonky even when she isn't on a shoot

example >> HERE

normally I would agree, but this is that drag-queen tape that gets used all the time in fashion to make the eyes look more exaggerated. Dior uses it all the time for their fashion shows

Dior 1 & Dior 2

 

[Unknownpleasures]

Pat McGrath has used tape before to raise the eye brows and give an edgier look to the models.

 

[The_Ida]

EVERYONE uses tape on photo shoots. Even on younger models.

 

[daniellat]

I really don't see what the big deal is... It's a different look, it's fun.

 

[Toccata]

To look asian you'd have to tape your cheekbone to your ear (any higher blurs-out your vision).
Taping back your temple [as pictured] will only lift your eyebrow. Try it out with your finger!

 

[candlebougie]

Typical overreaction from the media.

 

[jmrmartinho]

can anybody tell me the problem of it?? :/

 

[Melancholybaby]

^The problem is that some people were offended because they tried to make Crystal look Asian when she's not. In my opinion,this wasn't the intention and as many members have stated above this is just a technique to make your eyes wider and in Crystal's case,to cover her 'problem'.

 

[Fernini]

Talk about exaggeration, now days ppl make big deals out of any insignificant thing.

 

[LabelWhore4]

Some people don't think this is insignificant, especially coming from a magazine that rarely celebrates the beauty of it's native inhabitants. I'd say that fact alone makes this very significant.

 

[kokobombon]

I understand the whole "if you want an asian look get an asian model" idea, the same with models with dark makeup resembling black people. But what if they wanted Crystal Renn looking asian? or "insert white model name" looking black? it´s not the same as hiring an asian or black model. I don´t see anything wrong with using certain racial characteristics in aesthetic ways of presenting certain fashions... I never hear any uproar when asian girls glue their eyelids in order to have western eyes but it always seems the fashion world is disrespecful of races and cultures when it´s the other way around.

 

[candlebougie]

I understand the whole "if you want an asian look get an asian model" idea, the same with models with dark makeup resembling black people. But what if they wanted Crystal Renn looking asian? or "insert white model name" looking black? it´s not the same as hiring an asian or black model. I don´t see anything wrong with using certain racial characteristics in aesthetic ways of presenting certain fashions... I never hear any uproar when asian girls glue their eyelids in order to have western eyes but it always seems the fashion world is disrespecful of races and cultures when it´s the other way around.

Yeah, I don't get it either. It's not like they are making fun of the Asian race or something.

That's like saying women shouldn't be styled androgynous or masculine - because you could hire a male model.

If they have a certain look in mind for the editorial and want to style a model like Crystal with her unique features that way, no problem for me.