Eric Wilson of the New York Times noticed something about the spring campaigns. The models in a number of them — Louis Vuitton, Versace, Calvin Klein, Valentino, Miu Miu, and Marc Jacobs — are all lying supine. Why? An analysis must be done. Legs splayed, backs arched, lips parted, eyes smiling and a little stoned-looking, it’s the kind of uncomfortable position women never adopt in real life naturally, save one circumstance:
“It’s obviously sexual,” [David Wolfe, the creative director of the Doneger Group, the trend forecasting company] said of the trend. “But the other thing I think of is animal psychology, because I do watch ‘The Dog Whisperer.’ When dogs or cats lower themselves to make themselves seem submissive, they are giving up their power and displaying their lack of aggression.”
Oh, sexy ads! Hot new trend, that. Wolfe added that the submissive stance may signify that fashion photographers want to portray traditional general roles. “Or,” Trebay writes, “it could just be that the spring fashions were so restrained that they didn’t know what else to do.” True. The message doesn’t seem all that new to us. Women frequently are portrayed in submissive or vulnerable positions in fashion photographs. Perhaps we should be thankful the posing trend of the season wasn’t this or this, or lying half-naked in front of a car, or lying half-naked on the trunk of a car while getting strangled by a grown man.
Fashion Takes a Lie-Down [NYT]
