

Three years ago, all 21 international Vogues signed and published a pact pledging that they would not use models under 16 (though this has occasionally been circumvented, as in the case of Kaia Gerber, who recently appeared in Italian Vogue, the photos used as part of an “age issue”). (Still, it is revealing that models are almost always referred to as “girls” by the industry itself they aren’t called “women.”) There is unquestionably heightened awareness within the industry, not to mention within the law, when it comes to the need to protect underage girls working in a grown-up world. To be fair, there has been some movement between then and now. And most consumers of adult fashion are, shocking as it may seem, actual adults. If the increasingly vociferous demands for diversity on the runway should have taught us anything, it is that consumers increasingly want to see models who look like them - all kinds of them. In one picture, she’s wearing thigh-high leather Versace platform boots in another, cat-eye makeup, a Prada dress and a pout. And Kaia Gerber, Cindy Crawford’s daughter, has landed a photo spread in the September issue of CR Fashion Book, Carine Roitfeld’s magazine. “It’s once again using girls to sell clothes to women.”Ī season after the more mature among us were widely celebrated in ad campaigns like Céline’s (Joan Didion) and Saint Laurent’s (Joni Mitchell), complete with numerous articles ( yes, here too) positing fashion’s embrace of the silver dollar, the fashion pendulum has, it seems, swung dramatically in the opposite direction.Īside from Dior’s new find, Sofia Mechetner, Chanel has announced that the face of its eyewear campaign will be Lily-Rose Depp, 16, daughter of Johnny Depp and Vanessa Paradis. “It’s not a fairy tale, it’s a cliché,” said Sara Ziff, the founder of the Model Alliance, discussing fashion’s favorite new narrative, that of a 14-year-old Israeli who went to Paris in search of a modeling career, met the designer Raf Simons in a Dior store and ended up opening the Dior couture show this month. Given the monetary value of such bookings and the prestige of being linked with these top tier brands exclusives are tracked in addition to openings and closings during show season.It’s a “Cinderella story.” A “fairy tale.” A “total Cinderella moment.” Girls booked under a semi exclusive cannot walk in any other show in that city before the show.

#Model runway walk full
Girls booked under an exclusive cannot walk any other shows in that city, or for the full season. The "Top Shows" used in this list are the ones below whose show casting are considered to be influential.Įach season a select group of designers chooses a few models per show for an exclusive booking. This list is entirely automated based on each model's show credits in the database. These are the girls casting directors and designers look to time and again come fashion month.

More than simply highlighting the catwalkers who have tackled a myriad of shows in a single season the shows ranking also highlight the models known for their work on the runways over the last several season. It takes a special breed of model to walk hundreds of shows per year and connect with the vision of countless designers, but the ones who can pull off the impressive feat hold a special place in the business. The runway is the true domain of models - magazine covers and campaigns may be overrun with celebrities, but models will always dominate catwalk.
