after seeing arlenis, jourdan and chanel on so many runways during the spring collections, i started getting optimistic about the accompanying ad campaigns. how pretty would jourdan look for prada, chanel in gucci, ralph lauren, or marc jacobs, and arlenis in oscar de la renta! but based on early returns, the only person who has anything major is arlenis, who signed with lancome before new york really got underway. i’m still waiting for the payoff after all the talk, panels, and coverage about black models in terms of editorials and ad campaigns. many of the major brands are keeping with their “vanilla” ways, with rumours flying on the imagist that prada will be “very blonde and european.” so it seems if you want a diverse campaign, you need to be a super (naomi/ysl or liya kebede/lanvin) or be schilling for gap (which coincidentally had chanel iman for fall and is rumoured to have arlenis for spring). how un-fashion forward.
chanel at dolce & gabbana, arlenis backstage at ralph lauren, and jourdan at stella mccartney…pics from style.com
