Source: vogue runway
First things first, let’s talk about fashion week. But not about the amazing shows going on which, by the way, have me absolutely mesmerized. (Have you seen Marchesa? omg and loving Victoria Beckham so much it almost hurts.)
Leaving aside the “couture” topic I would like to adress the behaviour component. It’s actually very interesting to sit and look what everyone is doing. In my former blog (janiraschoice) I wrote a post talking about how people lie about their knowdelege in the fashion industry and brands, relating my point to a video I just had watched (link here). Anyways, that kind of “I-know-it-all-im-fucking-fashion-victim-cant-you-see” attitude makes me puke. But even though that still goes on there’s something that has catched my attention more than anything this time. And that is Bella Hadid’s fall during New York Michael Kors runway show. Not her graceous stumble, but the way people reacted to it.
As she fell everyone rushed to record it and/or post it on social media.
What is happening right now? Why would someone film a model falling rather than helping her?
As I started thinking about it some key concepts crossed my mind:
1.Slaktivism: or the art of “showing support for a cause but only truly being beneficial to the egos of people participating in this so-called activism”. The newest form of activism through the internet in which you show support to a cause but actually don’t act according to it.
2.Candice Swanepoel falling on a NY fashion week but actually being helped.
3.Black Mirror (the series) which show a reality where technology has numbed the human race and people become quite selfish.
4.Schadenfreude: or the german word (also used in english language) that defines pleasure through the suffering or misfortune of others.
But how do the concepts above relate to the fact that Bella fell?
Easy peasy, but let’s break it down: slaktivism makes me think of people not having a real useful reaction to the fact she fell.
Candice fell and some audience offered a hand, so… does the model and the public of the show matter? Absolutely. Candice is a respected model and everyone thinks she has worked hard for getting where she is (which she has), while Bella is just a famous rich kid who designers hire for instant fame and exposition of their brand. Also the brands that held the show were quite different: Givenchy, a high-couture respected house, while Michael Kors is quite “basic girl” material.*
Black Mirror is an overexaggeration of what the future could be, but in the end this simple silly act of filming Bella like crazy and the fact that it went viral is just a methaphore of how individualist is our society becoming.
And last but not least, schadenfreude. Bella Hadid is young, rich and famous. Most people her age are still figuring out what to do with their life and are quite of a “hot-mess”. When they see that someone like Hadid makes mistakes too they feel relieved and at ease (at least for just 5 seconds).
*making very general statements, I actually like Bella and think she’s a great model and I love the werable style that Michael Kors offers.
So, what do you think? I know maybe it’s not such a big deal but I like to see it as an opportunity to rethink our acts. And grow as human beings.
Will you act your thoughts?
Definitely yes.(or you should)
As I like to remind myself: let your actions do the talking.
Write to you next week,
Love, Janira x
WHY? 
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