This video of non-models recreating fashion ads is a thing of beauty
For all the movement on body positivity within much of the world, there’s still quite a ways to go in certain industries; namely, fashion, which despite efforts to have more diverse (in all ways) models on the runway and in campaigns, still ascribes to a very obvious “ideal.” This much is especially apparent in ad campaigns; while most people don’t follow runways and fashion weeks down to the last detail, most of us have seen fashion ads on billboards, in magazines, and on TV.
Speaking from experience, it’s a little bit disheartening to see all these images of glamorous clothes on preternaturally glamorous people. Sure, there are certain designers that have bucked that mode, like Lane Bryant and Tomboy Shop, but they’re the exceptions to the rule in fashion advertising.
As Cora Harrington of the indie blog The Lingerie Addict puts it:
What would a world of true body diversity look like? Luckily, our friends at BuzzFeed decided to create that world for themselves, asking staffers of all shapes, shades, and sizes to recreate iconic fashion ads. The results are stunning, and show the power of having media that doesn’t reflect lofty “aspirations,” but instead, you and your reality.
From Justin Bieber’s Calvin Klein ad to vintage ads from earlier decades, the responses the BuzzFeed staffers have to seeing themselves side-by-side with these idealized images are a real reflection of the power of body positivity in action. Watch below, and just try not to feel all the feels:
Related reading:
The rad campaign combatting body-shaming ads—one sticker at a time
Couples recreate old pictures of themselves and our hearts melt a little bit
(Image via YouTube/Buzzfeed)
