Model Behavior (PLEASE READ POST #1 BEFORE POSTING)

[dsamg]

I find Gemma to be so confusing ? She sometimes acts like the popular girl who lost her popularity.I wonder if she misses being on top and has regrets on how her career has gone ; She has tried to comeback multiple times and it has brought her nothing .Why not move on from an industry that is not welcoming to you .Her whole identity seems to be soo stuck on her "supermodel" days.Her prime.

*Hearsay read on another site (skinnygossip) that during that time she also behaved like a brat ,was acting out.

I mean she was extremely young and starving so I don't really blame her for acting like a brat. She obviously came back because she needed the money and has no other skills - not being harsh, just the truth. She actually has some lucrative contracts at the moment so I wouldn't say it has brought her nothing.

 

[dsamg]

Btw are the no weight talk rules over? I remember a time we would get a warning for even alluding to anyone's size.

 

[Lola701]

That is my exact problem with these videos. The content is important, but it's so bizarre that they're reporting on this stuff as if they didn't have anything to do with it.

Technically, they don’t really have anything « direct » to do with it. They are responsible because they are a part of the industry and feeding of that but it’s not the Vogue staff who asked to models to starve themselves.
It’s bizarre but the models didn’t find weird to appear on the video...

 

[billiejbob]

Btw are the no weight talk rules over? I remember a time we would get a warning for even alluding to anyone's size.

Considering how important size diversity is becoming in the modeling world and how more models are becoming more outspoken about things like harassment, exploitation, and weight pressure, talking about weight issues is just part and parcel of model discussions now. It would be extremely detrimental (and plain wrong) for TFS administrators to censor any talk about weight considering videos like the Vogue one put a lot of emphasis on it. It should never be a taboo subject because making it taboo stops or restricts any progress for discussion of size diversity in the fashion world etc.

 

[magsaddict]

I think in a way the industry has come along way in 10 years, there are certainly girls bigger than Gemma at the time she wore the Chanel bikini nowadays, an odd positive of the whole insta-girl thing is they get the luxury of not having to starve as much because they're not really there based on measurements to begin with.

One model whose trajectory in some ways mirrors Gemma is Maggie Rizer. Who also seemingly was dropped overnight and went through her own personal struggles, and like Gemma has made sporadic 'comebacks' since then.

 

[dsamg]

Considering how important size diversity is becoming in the modeling world and how more models are becoming more outspoken about things like harassment, exploitation, and weight pressure, talking about weight issues is just part and parcel of model discussions now. It would be extremely detrimental (and plain wrong) for TFS administrators to censor any talk about weight considering videos like the Vogue one put a lot of emphasis on it. It should never be a taboo subject because making it taboo stops or restricts any progress for discussion of size diversity in the fashion world etc.

As a long time member of these forums I would say that the standards required in the industry were much worse 10 years ago than they are now, so it was actually more detrimental to restrict us then than it is now.

 

[billiejbob]

As a long time member of these forums I would say that the standards required in the industry were much worse 10 years ago than they are now, so it was actually more detrimental to restrict us then than it is now.

Oh definitely. I completely agree about 10 years ago for sure. I also feel like 10 years ago discussions on weight were far more focussed on individual models ie posting a photo of model when they were at their lowest weight and discussing that specifically as opposed today when we more or less discuss the weight issue as a whole in the industry.

 

[billiejbob]

I think in a way the industry has come along way in 10 years, there are certainly girls bigger than Gemma at the time she wore the Chanel bikini nowadays, an odd positive of the whole insta-girl thing is they get the luxury of not having to starve as much because they're not really there based on measurements to begin with.

One model whose trajectory in some ways mirrors Gemma is Maggie Rizer. Who also seemingly was dropped overnight and went through her own personal struggles, and like Gemma has made sporadic 'comebacks' since then.

Definitely agree. Wasn't Maggie's hiatus due to personal struggles because of her fraudulent step father or something? I kinda wish houses would start requesting 00s models for big comeback shows even if sporadically just like Maggie at LV and Gemma at Prada and McQueen. I'd love to see someone like Irina L or Daria W or even (heaven forbid) Snejana O doing a Versace show.
But I feel like 00s models who dropped of the radar would have an easier time doing a comeback show than a model who does a few seasons in the 2010s then disappears. 00s models have so much more staying power it feels.

 

[Lola701]

I find Gemma to be so confusing ? She sometimes acts like the popular girl who lost her popularity.I wonder if she misses being on top and has regrets on how her career has gone ; She has tried to comeback multiple times and it has brought her nothing .Why not move on from an industry that is not welcoming to you .Her whole identity seems to be soo stuck on her "supermodel" days.Her prime.

*Hearsay read on another site (skinnygossip) that during that time she also behaved like a brat ,was acting out.

But wasn’t she the popular girl who lost her popularity?
Some models were prepared for the moment they lost their popularity and you can see how they anticipate their moves. They become more socially active, get a husband, start to embrace more commercial work or just prepare their next move...

Gemma wasn’t prepared. She became a huge star at 16 or 17. Almost overnight she became a millionaire and was the face of that new wave of models but I don’t think she knew that it was going to end that fast because 2007 started well professionally for her.

Her look was less fresh because it became the trend and fashion moved on to a more mature/sexy look. Late 2007 and early 2008 saw the return of the supermodels of the 90’s, some of the lesser known girls of the early 00’s had a new fresh air like Raquel and Anja and you had girls like Catherine McNeil with a more timeless mature look who came...

Gemma was already « not on trend » and her gain weight kinda accelerated everything. A girl Like Vlada had a longer run but her career didn’t explode like Gemma. Look at Lily Cole and all the girls who became big like Gemma, they had a very short run.

So I feel like she missed that popularity even more when her cinema career wasn’t as glorious as her modeling one. Maybe she feels like something was taken from her.

Look at the models who really made it as actresses... They weren’t BIG.

 

[modela]

You are right about that, I also wonder being with IMG maybe made it worse. They out of all the agencies were the most obsessed with making stars out of their model

*How long was her run

 

[magsaddict]

Definitely agree. Wasn't Maggie's hiatus due to personal struggles because of her fraudulent step father or something? I kinda wish houses would start requesting 00s models for big comeback shows even if sporadically just like Maggie at LV and Gemma at Prada and McQueen. I'd love to see someone like Irina L or Daria W or even (heaven forbid) Snejana O doing a Versace show.
But I feel like 00s models who dropped of the radar would have an easier time doing a comeback show than a model who does a few seasons in the 2010s then disappears. 00s models have so much more staying power it feels.

Maggie's step father squandered her entire fortune on a gambling and substance addiction and served prison time - around the same time her career stopped due to both the trauma and perhaps also the fickleness of the industry. She attempted a few mini comebacks during the mid 2000s - a Boss show, a L'Officiel Singapore cover, none of it at the same level as before. But wonderfully, in the past five years she's made some fabulous appearances - LV show, and the Vogue Japan 'Supermodels' cover. She also did the Ferragamo show recently.

I totally think the 00s models had something kind of magical, they were the last enigmas on the page and on the runway before the social media stuff really took off. They had this mystery around them.

 

[badgalcrush]

]

I didn't know Chanel Iman & Jourdan Dunn were not speaking to each other at one time because of the pressure of the industry putting women of color against each other Im so glad they have been mature enough to let this bs behind them and not ruined their friendship ( Jourdan was even a bridemaids at her wedding)
I am really wondering how it is these days do models of color fight to be THE ONE.. There is progress I can see it but still

 

[LostInNJ]

But wasn’t she the popular girl who lost her popularity?
Some models were prepared for the moment they lost their popularity and you can see how they anticipate their moves. They become more socially active, get a husband, start to embrace more commercial work or just prepare their next move...

Gemma wasn’t prepared. She became a huge star at 16 or 17. Almost overnight she became a millionaire and was the face of that new wave of models but I don’t think she knew that it was going to end that fast because 2007 started well professionally for her.

Her look was less fresh because it became the trend and fashion moved on to a more mature/sexy look. Late 2007 and early 2008 saw the return of the supermodels of the 90’s, some of the lesser known girls of the early 00’s had a new fresh air like Raquel and Anja and you had girls like Catherine McNeil with a more timeless mature look who came...

Gemma was already « not on trend » and her gain weight kinda accelerated everything. A girl Like Vlada had a longer run but her career didn’t explode like Gemma. Look at Lily Cole and all the girls who became big like Gemma, they had a very short run.

So I feel like she missed that popularity even more when her cinema career wasn’t as glorious as her modeling one. Maybe she feels like something was taken from her.

Look at the models who really made it as actresses... They weren’t BIG.

You are right about that, I also wonder being with IMG maybe made it worse. They out of all the agencies were the most obsessed with making stars out of their model

*How long was her run

I think the point that both of you are missing here is that she was ultimately cast away from the industry due to her weight gain. Plain and simple. That isn't something I think anyone would be mentally "prepared" for or ok with.

A lot of these so called 'comebacks' that people speak of, aren't always about taking the industry by storm again. Some girls of yesteryear prefer to do a handful of things here and there and that's it. Not everyone is interested in being a star or a household name, but find it fun to come back every now and then. Often times, I think we read too much into things and assume way too much while forgetting that models are people with feelings.

 

[Scotty]

 

[StoneSkipper]

Are there any updates on this? Is she okay, like, right now?

 

[tapenerd]

Honestly. Is she OK? I hope one of her friends saw this and checked on her. I hope she’s ok.

 

[modela]

I feel for Ajak , i hope people around her have gotten to her and are getting the help she needs.This isnt the first breakdown (if I'm correct)


Sometimes you need to know when to leave the industry. Ajak isn't cut out for this industry. I wish she would just leave and move on.

 

[GivenchyHomme]

Based on her behavior in that post I would say that this industry is the least of her problems. I hope someone close to her is getting her the help she needs!

 

[sore]

She just posted on Instagram that she's okay and getting better. I was really concerned about her, too, I hope she'll draw the right conclusions and get the help she needs. Poor thing.

 

[Benn98]

Ali MacGraw on Coco Chanel, Longevity and How She Hates Social Media

The "Love Story" star joined Lily-Rose Depp and a pregnant Keira Knightley at the launch of Chanel's revamped J12 watch in Paris.

By Joelle Diderich on May 3, 2019

............................“Most of these girls have been working a long time with Chanel, but I’m the oldest living one,” said Ali MacGraw, sitting on a sofa in the Chanel jewelry boutique on Place Vendôme next to the youngest of the bunch, Lily-Rose Depp.

The “Love Story” star was working as a stylist to fashion photographer Melvin Sokolsky in the Sixties when he was asked to shoot a Chanel collection — and Mademoiselle made quite the impression.

“She sat in the great suit — the old black one, you know, with a combination of real and great faux jewels, and a black grosgrain ribbon with beautiful scissors on it — and the models came in one at a time with what looked like absolutely perfect clothing,” the 80-year-old actress recalled.

“And she would sit there and say, ‘You call that a shirt?’” MacGraw said, mimicking the sound of scissors slashing through fabric. “And she would take the scissors and say, ‘This is your idea of a waistline?’ I mean, the women left as if they’d been gang-raped.”

Still, MacGraw was fascinated by Chanel’s aura. “I’ve read lots about her, I love what she did, but there was a real honesty about the way the essence of her was carried,” she said. Similarly, she was full of admiration for the house’s relationship with Karl Lagerfeld, who died in February after 36 years as creative director.

“I’m so kind of sad for the couturiers now that do a year with somebody and then they’re chucked out and they go someplace else,” she lamented. “I think that’s ridiculous and it’s very much of our time. It’s the shallowness of our time, and the fact that the great ‘get’ now is somebody with a gigantic presence on the Internet.”

MacGraw strayed into acting after appearing in a campaign for Chanel No. 5 perfume, for which she was paid the princely sum of $200 — at the time, the equivalent of a month’s salary. An agent spotted the image in a drugstore and helped launch her film career with “Goodbye, Columbus.”

But she’s still not comfortable in front of a camera. “I can’t stand it, even now,” she said, noting she has no online presence either. “I don’t do social media at all, not one bit. I don’t read it, and I don’t put myself on it, and it’s somebody else’s idea of a good time.”

............................................Claudia Schiffer has also gotten used to measuring time in Chanel years, having featured in her first campaign for the brand in 1998. “I did so many, not only campaigns with Karl Lagerfeld for Chanel, but also so many other photo shoots that we did for fashion magazines,” she said.

She confessed that, true to Germany’s reputation, she is unfailingly punctual. “I do live up to the stereotype. I have met Germans who are not very punctual, so maybe it doesn’t go for everyone, but I’m definitely very punctual because I don’t like waiting for other people. I wouldn’t want anyone to be waiting for me,” she said.

Campbell, on the other hand, was reliably late. By the time most guests had migrated across the square for dinner at the Ritz hotel, a couple of photographers were still waiting to shoot her at the photo call.

WWD