One “Haute Mess”
The current cover story for Vogue Italia has been turning heads and raising eyebrows all month as some have argued that the “Haute Mess” spread is an example of classism and racism in fashion. The spread features top models sporting over-the-top wigs and hair pieces and gold grills, others are eating fast food or taking pictures of themselves with bedazzled cell phones, and some are even rocking fake baby bumps. (Click here to check out a gallery of the photos.)
Many of the styles imitated (parodied?) in the story are often associated with poor people of color and some were complete rip offs of photos found on sites like “People of Wal-Mart,” as you can see from the similarities in the photos above.
Vogue Italia editor Franca Sozzani has defended the spread and even said that people who claim it’s racist need to see a professional psychologist.
What do you think of the cover story? Is it racist? Does the spread show evidence of classism in fashion?
Not sure I would call it racism, but I’d definitely call it stupid. It’s just a blatant attempt to capitalize on a weird fad. No one looks at those pics and sees fashion sense – it’s the freakshow appeal that gets people watching. Why celebrate that?