IN MY SHOES: What It’s Like To Be A Fashion Model
The Washington Post’s Robin Givhan offers this revealing behind-the-scenes description of a cattle call:
In the lobby of 275 W. 39th St., in the heart of the Garment District, a clutch of towering teenagers stand waiting for the elevator. Their tiny doll-like heads bob and swivel atop reed-thin bodies. They are hipless and cleavage-free, but with the luxuriously long, slender legs of a racehorse. They are about to be inspected like thoroughbreds.
The young women are headed to the 11th-floor showroom of womenswear designer Tracy Reese, who is casting her fall 2007 fashion show. …
The models are referred to by first name only - Eugenia, Sophie, Zuzana, Veronika - and each comes prepared with her "book" … a résumé in pictures. … In an 8-by-10 image, they are all smoky eyes, pouting lips and a gaze far more knowing than their actual years would suggest. In person, they giggle, go wide-eyed and try to please as they demonstrate their "walk."
Reese is known for woman-friendly collections that are sexy and pretty but never vulgar or overly aggressive. … The models - neither stars nor novices - are expected to reflect the mood of the clothes. The directions from Reese and casting director Andrew Broz are both painstakingly detailed and incredibly vague.
Reese: "I don't want the sexy pose. I want a more thoughtful pose."
Broz: "Walk in an elegant sexy way, not a bombshell sexy way."
Reese: "I want a pause, reflect, and go back. A deliberate pause, not a catch-me-as-I-swing."
Broz: "No stomping."
One girl after another attempts this subtle trick. Some of the less experienced models have trouble walking without projecting abject terror.
They walk about 25 feet, pause in front of an imaginary bank of photographers, then walk back. Young women who exuded personality only moments before - who were buoyant and funny - turn into ciphers.
The audition is over in less than three minutes.
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