Older Models In Demand
June 26, 2008, by Carine Fabius
The Los Angeles Times recently published an article about a new trend in the fashion world: a booming demand for older models—meaning 35 and older—for magazine spreads, and advertisers looking to reel in the aging boomer population. That’s us, folks.
The market for these older fashion goddesses is so hot that a former supermodel just endowed with a graduate degree in psychology decided to put off practicing psychotherapy in favor of the ever-so-fulfilling art of auditioning. Talk about going backwards. But, that’s just me being judgmental. The money’s probably a lot better, if you can get it. Plus, I think it’s a fine idea. “After all,” the author of the piece says, “what middle-aged woman wants to buy moisturizer from a model who’s too young to order a martini?” Indeed.
The only chink in this armor, though, was the part where they talked about a model I’d never heard of, but who was obviously somebody named Carmen Dell’Orefice (I did not make up this name). She will be appearing in a Rolex ad in the July issue of Vanity Fair, and she’s not just older, she’s in her seventies. Great, you say? The problem is this seventy-something woman looks like a younger version of Dolly Parton, who is 61 but looks 50 on a bad day. Take a look at Ms. Dell’Orefice in the ad above. The capper on this caper is the tag line for the ad: Class is forever. Just like wrinkles.
So, let me get this straight. They hope to relieve us of our dollars by featuring women who supposedly reflect us—the ones who drink martinis—with LIES. Last time I looked, the average woman in her seventies bears no resemblance to Ms. Dell’Orefice: she does not have a make-up artist hiding in her private boudoir; and, she certainly does not keep an airbrush artist on hand to make her look 30 years younger in the pictures gracing her family photo albums. I’m not saying they should go back to using 18-year-olds to sell us anti-aging serums. It’s just that I would prefer the martini-drinking 50-year-old hawking my next watch appear to be at least capable of having a hangover the next day.
June 26th, 2008 at 9:43 am
I agree that the woman they use for ads like this should indeed look like perhaps a well-put-together seventy-something. But that would be far too real. I’m 56 and wear young clothes in a slender body and spin my hula hoop to House music in my front courtyard – with the wrinkles I sport in place of that long slender neck of my 20’s, I’m not doing too badly. Would they photograph me? Absolutely but not my face. It would take a photoshop massive endeavor to cause the evidence of my age to go away. So I call this new/old cattle call inauthentic at best, a slap in the face at its worst. How about we all get together at one of these cattle calls and show them what age is and how proud we are of every part of it. But not till I get my face lift
June 26th, 2008 at 12:33 pm
I don’t know what you’re talking about. My mom’s 92 and she looks better than any 50 year old. PSYCH! You are so right. But at least we have the brains (do we???) to see through it. As the mother of a tween girl about to hit her teenage years, I can tell you that the impact of advertising is profound and toxically impacts girl’s body image. It’s hard on them, but now, to add insult to injury, advertisers are going to continue demoralizing women from the cradle to the grave. It starts with The Disney Princesses and never ends.
June 26th, 2008 at 6:09 pm
So now we know what Madonna will look like when she’s 70.
June 27th, 2008 at 10:34 am
i hope in addition to your blog you sent your editiorial to the l.a. times as commentary on their article. i like that older models are getting gigs, but it would be nice if an older woman’s beauty was shown/recognized in more realistic terms. for beauty comes in many forms, not only in smooth skin.
June 27th, 2008 at 11:31 am
Yes there are glamorous women well into their golden years, my mother is one of them. She has lines that show she has lived a long life, and they are beautiful lines. I wonder what the young girls coming up are going to think about what age actually looks like. With the high-profiled faces of women being line-free, tight and shiny, what does a real seasoned woman look like? Do journalists think about that or do advertisers look to the future? I found a photo of this “timeless” model Carmen Dell’Orefice, not airbrushed — regal, wrinkled, still beautiful and REAL. Why not use something like that? Not “classy” enough? See the photo here; http://www.telegraph.co.uk/fashion/main.jhtml?xml=/fashion/2008/01/13/st_carmendellorefice113.xml
July 1st, 2008 at 11:21 am
Merci beaucoup Carine, for pointing out how ridiculous the message is here. My response to the new “older” model? Airbrush this!