American Vogue has broken ranks with mainstream magazines and featured a fashion spread with ‘plus-sized’ models. They haven’t just popped a larger woman in its pages and applauded itself for supporting ‘real bodies’, while leaving its fashion pages for the skinny models. This time the provocative images are all part of a lingerie spread and it’s stunning. The black and white images show women in all their glory.
The shoot, by photographer Cass Bird, feature women of all shapes, sizes and cultural backgrounds in lingerie labels including Agent Provocateur and Lane Bryant. The models are members of body-positive coalition, ALDA. It was formed after Ford modeling agency closed its ‘plus-size’ division. Cass Bird shared some images on her Instagram feed,
Image by: Cass Bird. Source: Instagram.
Photo: Cass Bird. Source: Instagram.
It’s so wonderful to see where the skin folds under their arms and their tummies sit over their waistbands. And, shock horror, their thighs touch. It’s not all perfectly pert bottoms, concave bellies and photo-shopped skin. It’s real and voluptuous and super sexy. And it’s also wonderful to see hot lingerie for ample busts too. Do you know how hard it is to find gorgeous underwear when you’re 16 DD and above? It’s virtually impossible.
It’s a beautiful photo shoot with curves and boobs and sensuality. But here’s where I have to say something that perplexes me. Why is it that every time a magazine goes down the ‘plus-size’ and ‘we support real bodies and women of all shapes and sizes’ route that the women are pretty much always in the underwear? Why is it that they feel women have to take off their clothes and stand around in their knickers to prove a point?
I’ve flashed my belly before a couple of times to show what my post-baby belly looked like, but when a magazine recently asked me to strip down for a feature promoting positive body image I declined. I couldn’t see why I had to be in a sports bra and knickers – what’s wrong with a dress or jeans and a t-shirt? Instead, I offered up my words and they agreed to publish a commentary style piece about the pressure on new mums to lose body weight. It felt way more liberating knowing I’d voiced my thoughts about an important issue, rather than took my clothes off.
I’d really like to see editors just put women in the pages of their magazines in all the sections – from the front page to the back page – regardless of their size. I’d like to see them get away from making a strategic editorial decision to have ‘big girls in bras’ and get on with actually changing the way women are viewed in modern day media. They have the power in their hands to make real change, not just token steps for media exposure.
Wouldn’t it be amazing if there were editorials and comment pieces focusing on the fact women’s magazines have stories featuring women with ample brains, rather than continuing to focus on their bra size. Yes, let’s rejoice women’s bodies. Yes, let’s not fat shame nor encourage thinspiration and instead support positive body image. But surely there’s a time soon the fact a magazine put more ‘real women’ in underwear in their pages isn’t mainstream news.
How about magazines instead started to put more women in their pages who achieve something in the fields of science, politics, business, engineering, documentary making, writing, charitable endeavours, art, mothering, diplomacy, law and sport. And leave their clothes on.
Bianca x
Hi, I'm Bianca Wordley, I write about life.
CANNOT tell you how much I agree. I hate women (who aren’t models) stripping off full stop. WHY do actors, ‘real women’, celebrities, whatever, have to be photographed in their undies? Drives me bonkers. It’s just voyeurism and it shits me.
Exactly Kerri. Shits me too x
CLAPCLAPCLAP. Yep. Perfectly articulated B. I was nodding my head so much, my little bell was ringing on the top of my noddy hat. How often do we see successful or inspiring men being asked to take off their suits or strip down to their boxers. Is a woman’s healthy body attitude the only measure of her success? Is it such a revelation that a woman might accept herself as she is? Is the most interesting thing about Tracey Spicer how she looks without makeup? It pissed me off when it popped into my FB feed. I didn’t read it, so apologies if there was a point. But seriously. For offs sake, let’s get a grip.
I’d love to see you in that Noddy hat!
Here, here! You don’t see successful men having to get their kit off just to get noticed, or asked to take their toupes off for a photo shoot, and all that business about going make up free gets on my tits too, (excuse the pun,) I hate that society expects that I should wear make up every day, because I’m a woman. Ain’t nobody got time for that!
oh me too – the make up free stuff is so boring x
Big brains – yes please!! Big hearts too. Knickers… Zzzzzz
Oh yes – big hearts too x
We rarely see men posing in their smalls to make a political point (more’s the pity) but every week a female seems moved to do it. (Witness the recent Keira Knightly topless spread). Women’s bodies are certainly subject to more scrutiny than men’s but very often its women perpetuating the body image obsession. Its time we moved away from it and celebrated women’s achievements.
could you imagine having to see men in the smalls all the time. ONly if it was Matt Damon x
Agree completely that we shouldn’t have to get our kit off to attract attention. It’s ridiculous. And there seems to be so much attention on body image at the moment & I wonder if that was resolved if contentment would rest in all of us? I don’t think so. There’s still the renovations, the holidays, the consumer purchasing etc that society places value on that forms our identity and our worthiness where we will compare & desire. People look so much for external acceptance rather than internal (even some that make a career out of the positive body image message are still gleaning approval from others) & I think self esteem will always be questioned till that is resolved. Ideally we shouldn’t need someone else to tell us that we’re ok for us to feel ok.
very ridiculous!
Fair point Bianca. However, it wouldn’t be a fashion mag then, would it? I don’t read vogue or any others of its kind, but they kind of have to show women in clothes. Hopefully they won’t have to give it a special plus size label, but it can all be labelled women’s fashion.
Yep exactly – that’s why I said I’d love to see women of all shapes just in the pages of the magazine – not singled and put in underwear. x