By Pavlina Hatzopoulos
Did fashion really accomplish more in one week than what it has in years? Brush aside those pictures of Kim K’s oily butt in Paper Magazine because there’s another editorial making waves for all the right reasons. System Magazine have released images of supermodel and Calvin Klein muse Lara Stone that are completely un-retouched and are a true depiction of her post-baby body after giving birth to her son a year ago.
(All Images photographed by Juergen Teller for System Magazine, via Into The Gloss)
It’s so refreshing to see an editorial that depicts the model as so natural and real, with very little styling and hair and makeup. These images are incredibly raw and honest, and the fact that their release has become such an enormous deal, really shines a light on the impossible standards that the fashion industry exerts onto models, which even Lara herself has addressed.
Speaking to The Edit on accepting her post-baby body she said; “You have to sit there and really think about it: ‘Oh, I grew this little person’s fingernails in my tummy.’ After that, do you really give a shit about arm flab? Because I don’t.”
This is a perfect example of the industry taking a step forward and embracing women in their realest form – whether that is skinny, or curvy, tall or short.
In the past week, Calvin Klein has also initiated some conversation from the release of their new underwear campaign for ‘Perfectly Fit’. The campaign features renowned models like the aforementioned Lara Stone, Jourdan Dunn, Amanda Wellsh and Ji Hye Park, however it also makes the debut of relatively unknown model Myla Dalbesio, in the images below.
Images from Calvin Klein via Elle US
This has certainly caused some discussion, as Myla is different to any of the models the brand has worked with before, as she isn’t a traditional straight sized model. Myla made this statement to NBC’s Today; “I am among one of many girls that are, like, ‘in-betweenies’,” “So we’re not skinny enough to be straight size –these size 0, size 2 girls – and we’re not large enough to be considered for plus-size.”
Calvin Klein has received some negative backlash as people have taken to social media to express their outrage that a seemingly ‘normal’ sized girl is labelled as plus sized. However, Calvin Klein have never made a distinction between Myla and the other models featured in the campaign, never labelling her as plus sized, and there is no separate section for ‘plus sized’ girls, which in my opinion sees the brand as highly undeserving of this criticism. Calvin Klein has since released this statement, showing their true intentions of body diversity among the campaign;
“The new Calvin Klein Underwear Perfectly Fit imagery features models Myla Dalbesio, Jourdan Dunn, Amanda Wellsh, Ji Hye Park and the face of the brand, Lara Stone, in several styles. The Perfectly Fit line was created to celebrate and cater to the needs of different women, and these images are intended to communicate that our new line is more inclusive and available in several silhouettes in an extensive range of sizes.”
While Myla said that she wasn’t sure of what was expected of her “in terms of size” on the shoot, she claims, “no one even batted an eye.” This is such a massive step in the right direction. Traditionally every time a model that isn’t straight sized is featured in a big name magazine or ad campaign there’s a lot of hype surrounding it, which is great for raising awareness in the fashion industry in increasing diversity. But it’s also great to see such a global brand like Calvin Klein quietly breaking through norms in fashion without creating a fuss, as it shows that models are starting to be not classified by size and that detrimental labels such as ‘plus-sized’, are being thrown out the window.
Instagram: @pavlina__h
