The Truth About The "Return Of The Supermodel"

[LaQuintincianica]

I'm ready to start seeing personality in models. I may be able to recognize models by their faces, but no real personality has come across. The older supermodels deffinitely showed personality. They were just less boring.

I agree

 

[Boomer]

But when you see someone who shines so much, like Tiiu, it very refreshing, no? Enough with the nasty looking unknown models!
(They're mostly why I follow thw shows and magazines, anyway!) :->

 

[UneVieEnOr]

I just hope this repulsive alien look goes away (Signalling Daria and Gemma!!)

 

[sarah13]

The return of the supermodel!

Well August Vouge has Linda Evangelista on the cover (the first non movie star in a year) and also features Christy Turlington and Carolyn Murphy. Then I just read this article in today!

From The Daily

Donatella's Bold New Era: Testino and supes reunite for Versace's fall/winter ads

Images from Versace's fall/winter campaign
www.fashionweekdaily.com

Wednesday, July 26, 2006

(NEW YORK) A fabulous trio of supermodels from yesteryear meet their modern day counterparts as Christy Turlington, Carolyn Murphy, and Kate Moss converge with Daria Werbowy and Angela Lindvall for the fall/winter Versace advertising campaign. Here, The Daily gets a first look at the campaign in its entirety.

Foregoing the celebrity path of the past three seasons, which starred Halle Berry, Demi Moore, and Madonna, respectively, Donatella Versace has decided to recapture the spirit of the supermodels—a path not visited with significance since the fall 1994 campaign, when Richard Avedon lavishly captured Nadja Auermann, Cindy Crawford, Claudia Schiffer, Stephanie Seymour, and the aforementioned Turlington, surrounded by five naked men that served as “props.”

“I started my career working with the Versaces and it had been years since I had seen Donatella,” Turlington said. “It was great to spend a day catching up with old friends and familiar faces. Shooting the campaign was definitely much more fun than work.” The ever-elusive Kate Moss added, “It was great to see faces I haven’t seen for a while. We have all grown up and had children, so there was a lovely family atmosphere on set, with all our kids coming and going.”

“It was time to do something different,” Versace said. “People are really looking at the ‘super’ models again today—how they dress—both casually and on the red carpet, where they socialize, how they live. They are glamorous and they lead glamorous lives. Many are married to rock stars or to actors. Created by Versace in the early 90s, the supermodel phenomenon has recaptured the media’s attention completely.”

Styled by Brana Wolf, the four images selected to run in books were taken in a studio in New York by frequent Versace lensman Mario Testino at the end of April, just days before the Costume Institute Gala, which Versace and several of the campaign models subsequently attended. "There was a great vibe in the studio and everyone was really relaxed," Wolf said. "This collection and campaign was a sort of tribute by Donatella to Gianni [Versace] so it felt appropriate to be shot this way."

The company plans to run the images in select fashion and lifestyle magazines beginning in September. While Versace declined to reveal her women’s ad budget, it is said to be on par with seasons past, if not a tad higher due to the increased size of talent.

Stripped of the excess of the past, and with a noticeably diminished focus on the background atmosphere, Versace is paring it down and casting the light on the designs themselves. “It’s taking it back to the glamour moment without it being too ornate,” said a company spokeswoman. “Everything is still sexy, but simplified and more focused.”

Indeed, gone are the often garish gold Medusa heads and Baroque elements that sometimes overpowered campaigns from the late 80s and early 90s. Instead, Versace’s glamour girls of today are clad in simple, almost sedate, monochromatic outfits that barely register the superfluity of Versace’s past. About the only indication that this new Versace woman likes to take a walk on the wild wide every now and then is through her hair, which has been professionally teased to maximize its effect.

In one shot, all five models are wearing tan dresses accessorized only with Versace watches and heels and boots. Turlington has on a one-shoulder cocktail dress, which retails for $1,624, while Werbowy poses in a $1,595 Twiggy-inspired pocket a-line dress. Two images feature the group of models clad in all black ensembles—one with accessories. In that photograph, Moss is holding a $2,080 mini Club clutch. Murphy is shown wearing a black patent leather trench coat that retails for $4,431.

Throughout the campaign, the models are accessorized with four styles of footwear: a black patent leather décolleté heel ($845); a black patent leather décolleté with slanting closure ($740); slip-in ankle boot in patent leather with cross sewing and mirrored heel ($1,077), and motorcycle knee-high patent leather boots ($1,840). All are wearing Versace leggings, which retail for $652.50. In the one shot with a focus on sunglasses, the two models wear $340 black sunglasses with signature Versace silver logo on the temple.
“It’s great to see celebrities in ads, but this return to a selection of top models demonstrates a different element of strength and diversity,” said Lindvall. “Donatella loves what she does and does it well.”
JIM SHI

 

[PrincesseDaria]

I think that the return of the supermodel is definetly comming back. they are ruling again! ^^ that's an example, a very good one. i just hope that eugenia volodina is going to be there too

 

[Callidora]

Designers Return to supermodels after celebrity flops

I thought this article was very interesting, especially since it was done by AP, a credible mainstream news organization.

Designers return to supermodels after celebrity flops

By Rachel Dodes And Cheryl Lu-lien Tan | The Wall Street Journal
ASSOCIATED PRESS​

07/26/2006

Italian fashion house Versace SpA is practically synonymous with celebrity ads: In 1995, Prince appeared with the word "Slave" scrawled across his face. Last year, Demi Moore lounged in a cleavage-baring halter dress; Madonna perched on a glass desk in a tight taupe shirtdress.​

For fall, in a move likely to be widely watched in the fashion hothouse, Versace is planning another provocative advertising move: using professional models.​

But not just any models.​

Christy Turlington, Kate Moss and Carolyn Murphy will grace the new Versace ads in September issues of Vogue, Harper's Bazaar and Elle, wearing minidresses, A-line coats, black leggings and patent-leather boots. "This is a new angle for today," says Donatella Versace, creative director of the fashion house, who says she wants to draw attention to her creations, rather than to the celebrities who wear them.​

Louis Vuitton, owned by LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton, is also returning to supermodels, after relying on actresses Jennifer Lopez, Christina Ricci, Scarlett Johansson and Uma Thurman in recent years. Gisele Bundchen stars in its spring ad campaign; Ms. Moss, Naomi Campbell and relative newcomer Daria Werbowy appear in the fall campaign, which launches this month.​

The change is also evident at Vogue, where the August cover features a pregnant Linda Evangelista, the first model to appear on the cover after 14 straight months of celebrities.​

The pendulum's swing back to models reflects what some fashion marketers are calling "celebrity fatigue": A-list entertainers are so overexposed that "there is a major lack of trust," says Milton Pedraza, chief executive of the Luxury Institute, a New York consulting firm.​

It also underscores the tension between serious fashion magazines and celebrity books like People, USWeekly, Star and InStyle that increasingly feature pages of head-to-toe red carpet shots of celebrities sporting designer fashions.​

"Ten years ago, having a celebrity in your ad would class it up," says Robert Thompson, founding director at Syracuse University's Bleier Center for Television and Popular Culture. "Now, there's something cheesy about it. ... There are so many celebrities on so many magazines all the time."​

The return of the supermodel also follows some celebrity-ad bellyflops. This summer's multimillion-dollar campaign for St. John Knits Inc. starring Angelina Jolie hasn't plumped up the brand's sales and may even have alienated core customers, marketing experts say. Officials at the company weren't available for comment. Gap Inc.'s three-season contract with Sarah Jessica Parker, which started in 2004, seemed like a smart move at first, but by the time the campaign's third season rolled around, the series "Sex and the City" had ended, and consumers grew tired of the ads. A Gap spokeswoman declined to comment.​

Of course, Ms. Moss, Ms. Evangelista and other supermodels are celebrities in their own right -- a fact not lost on Nikon Corp., which chose Ms. Moss for its digital-camera ads precisely because of "all the buzz that comes along with being Kate," according to Danielle Korn, an executive vice president at Interpublic Group's McCann Erickson, New York, which produced the ads. Tabloid newspapers chronicled Ms. Moss's recent drug problems, which led to the cancellation of the 32-year-old model's contracts with Hennes & Mauritz AB's H&M stores and Chanel SA. (Burberry PLC cancelled its fall 2005 campaign with Ms. Moss by mutual agreement. But it is using her again for fall 2006.)​

Still, style experts say that models may convey more fashion gravitas and sophistication than screen actresses. "They're specifically related to fashion," says Sally Singer, fashion news features director at Vogue, which mostly used models on its cover until 2000, when the magazine started featuring mostly actresses, partly because readers were identifying with celebrities more.​

Others see an unmistakable climate change. "We're seeing a return to the focus on the product rather than just the image," says David Wolfe, a New York fashion consultant and creative director of the Doneger Group. "People have decided that when they buy the image they are not really getting anything."​

The shift back to models also involves practical considerations. A new model may make as little as $5,000 to $10,000 a day, industry executive say. Supermodels can get $1 million for two campaigns -- spring and fall -- for the same client in a year. Actresses, as a rule, can command several million dollars for a single campaign. Celebrities often demand more creative control and are difficult to schedule, since they are often juggling movie shoots or tours.​

The new Versace campaign, completed in two days and shot by the fashion photographer Mario Testino, cost around $500,000 to produce, the company says. (For Versace, that actually exceeded the cost of some of its recent campaigns featuring Madonna, Ms. Moore, Halle Berry and other "friends of the house," who posed for nominal fees, free clothes or charitable contributions.)​

Models can also be easier to work with, says Ivan Bart, senior vice president of IMG Models, which represents actresses and models such as Carolyn Murphy, Kate Moss and Shalom Harlow. "They're professionally trained to be photographed incredibly well," he says. "They know which camera angles work."​

And models are also more timeless. "People are getting afraid that actors are only as hot as their last movie or TV show," says Faith Kates, founder of Next Model Management, New York, who expects her firm to see a 15 percent to 20 percent increase in revenue this year as a result of supermodels' return. Besides, shes adds, "models don't show up with an entourage."​

Luxury labels, of course, aren't swearing off celebrities cold turkey. Dressing stars for their red-carpet appearances remains a fundamental tactic. The free clothes that fashion houses often lavish on stars help perpetuate the practice. Versace itself frequently dresses actresses, including Jessica Alba, who wore Versace to the Golden Globes and the Oscars this year. The company says it doesn't pay Ms. Alba to wear Versace but does "lend" her clothes.​

Interestingly, the fashion industry has shied away from models for so long that advertisers seeking a well-known face have to go back to supermodels like Ms. Turlington (age 37) or Ms. Campbell (age 36) or Ms. Moss (32), says Sean Patterson, president of Wilhelmina Models, New York. "The industry hasn't allowed a new set of supermodels to be created," he says.​

One exception is the 22-year old Ms. Werbowy, who is set to appear in coming Versace ads. She was born in Krakow, Poland, and lived in Ukraine before moving to a Toronto suburb when she was 3. Still, while she may be famous within the industry, Mr. Patterson says, "if you went to a mall in the middle of America, nobody would know who she was."​

Meanwhile, as those in media and advertising search for the next fresh face, one publication has gone an intriguing route. Elle magazine last month featured an interesting choice of model in a fashion spread: Isabel Dupre, its very own style director.​

 

[ialmrnt5]

A lot of models now just aren't pretty to the general public, so they just don't care about them, and that is why Linda was more popular with the fashion crowd, because her look was out there, and Cindy is still much better known and recognized. *** Please see tFS guidelines ***

 

[sarah13]

The Wall Street Journal! I saw that yesterday too. Thanks for posting it.

 

[sexydaydreamer]

I can't wait for the return of the curves to come back! I want the Audrey Hepburns, the Marilyn Monroes, and the Dorothy Dandriges back! Where are thou classics?

 

[AliCat]

I can't wait for the return of the curves to come back! I want the Audrey Hepburns, the Marilyn Monroes, and the Dorothy Dandriges back! Where are thou classics?

Audrey Hepburn... curvy?

 

[iluvjeisa]

Audrey Hepburn... curvy?

Well, I was wondering a little about that as well. But I think it could be true using a less common connotation of the word. In the 50s and early 60s the fashions, that Audrey wore in her most famous films, were designed to make daintly little figures curvy, as in the silhouette "having curves". Basically, at that time curvy meant "having curves" as opposite to being a euphemism for rubinesque.

 

[sexydaydreamer]

Audrey Hepburn... curvy?

If you were to compare her to these waifs, she looks certainly curvy. She was curvy (IMO) in a kind of petite way.

 

[catherinea]

Modeling industry does need over hauled. It's boring

 

[Ferdinanda]

I read that guy's blog all the time and while I do generally agree with him, I think he goes out on a limb a lot of the time. And he really advocates cheesy beauties like Adriana Lima, etc.

How is she cheesy? Old thread I know, found it by accident don't expect you to answer it. But I don't think she is cheesy. I think she is drop-dead gorgeous. I love Gisele, but I won't deny that she isn't too attractive in the facial area.

 

[Ferdinanda]

Oh yeah very intresting article. I do think the Brasilians were to beautiful for their own good. I mean why go from this glamorous return to beautiful women to the Belgians? Then the baby-doll phase (which I still don't get the appeal to this day). To these drop-dead gorgeous icy Russian beauties. Then now Suvi, Masha, & Anabela.

Puzzling....

 

[Hotaru]

I can just approve the "Return of the supermodel".The fashion industry makes me sad somehow.In the last three years more,and more and more models came out.How many models are on the high fashion market now?1000,2000 or 5000?If you look back at the year 2003 or 2004,everything began.There were still supermodels on the catwalk,but other newcomers like Natasha Poly,Kim Noorda,Hana Soukupova and Eugenia Volodina arrived.Not that it was a bad invasion of course...They had gorgeous faces,you could accept or even adore them.Well,but it wasn´t enough,unfortunately not.Afterwards a GIANT number of new models followed,most of them looked like aliens,and the supermodels were more and more displaced.Now faces like Anabela and Irina are getting the big,popular designer campaigns.Aliens,plain and tired faces and even clown-wannabes are dominating the fashion market today.Where are all the models who have grace,who have glamour,who have charisma???It´s so unfair:Boring faces with no talent are doing all these gorgeous campaigns.Overhyped,so-called "itgirls" with only limited talent are filling the pages of nearly all fashion magazines.
I don´t want to say that ALL new models are bad,that´s defintely not true,but some of them have no presence in editorials and campaigns.They look just plain and I can´t see any talent.The "comeback of the supermodel" would be great.A bit grace and glamour wouldn´t hurt,would it?

 

[kissablekae]

its up to Anna Wintour really youre not really a super till she puts you on a solo American Vogue cover. but their reasoning for not putting models on the cover anymore(very rarely) is because it doesnt sell as many issues as a actress. thats so sad of course i love models so its the opposite for me, if i see models on the cover of Vogue that would make me want to buy it! (which is why i stopped my subscription of American Vogue..every month its actresses!)

 

[KhaoticKharma]

Hasn't the "return of the supermodel" supposed to have occured at some point or another for the last, like, five years?

Seriously, I'll believe it when I see it.

 

[Ferdinanda]

True. It's was supposed to happen when Daria, NatV, and Gisele were on the cover. Then now Doutzen, Hilary, and Stam. Anna puts an issue out every 3-4 years proclaiming an era of fashion that will see the dawn of supermodels again. Pssssh, umm yeah okay.

 

[AD011620]

Will Big Supermodel Comeback Happen?

Recently quite a lot has been said and written about big supermodel comeback. Some even suggested that Supermodels (mainly from late eighties and nineties) will regain their supermodel status and make actresses or singers get back to their actual works, acting and singing, respectfully. There were lots of manipulations about supermodels comeback in the past as well but it actually never happened.

The aim of this thread is to discuss whether or not it will really happen, shall it really happen and if yes, who will be able to make it.

At the moment Claudia Schiffer is doing L’oreal, Chanel and Salvadore Ferragamo, Linda Evangelista – L’oreal, Prada, Naomi Campbell – YSL, Eva Herzigova – Louis Vuitton, Christy Turlington – Maybeline, Chanel, Escada, Amber Valleta – D’squerred, Shalom Harlow – Chanel…

Who else can make it? Stephanie Seymour, Tatjana Patitz, Helena Christensen, Nadja Auermann, Kristen McMennemy, Yasmeen Ghauri???

Okay let’s discuss….