Last week, Brazil’s fashion capital São Paulo hosted the 42nd edition of São Paulo Fashion Week. Considered by most to be South America’s premier fashion week, it’s widely praised for being a globally-acclaimed platform to both regional newcomers as well as established brands. Nonetheless, each season the same question arises, which depicts the overall state of Brazil’s emerging fashion industry: where are the black models?
The country has successfully launched the careers of industry favourites such as Gisele Bündchen, Isabeli Fontana, Alessandra Ambrosio, Adriana Lima, Raquel Zimmermann, Ana Beatriz Barros, Fernanda Tavares, plus Caroline Trentini. And those aren’t even all of them. When it comes to their darker-skinned fellow Brazilians however, the few which have been pushed by local mother agents and subsequently achieved international star status, can be counted on less than one hand: that is, Emanuela De Paula, Lais Ribeiro and Gracie Carvalho.
Even if some Brazilian models of African descent are walking their native country’s runways, they’re vastly outnumbered by their Causasian counterparts. This, in a country where more than 50% of its population is filed under the black/mixed-raced black category.
We reached out to Vogue Brasil Editor-in-Chief Daniela Falcão over the phone, to discuss Brazil’s struggle with equal opportunities for models of colour. Plus we took a closer look at what’s being done locally to heal the wounds of a nation which, to the outside world appears to celebrate its ethnic diversity, but on the inside seems reluctant to embrace it.
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In the year 2009 São Paulo fashion week organizers agreed to impose quotas, requiring 10% of models appearing on the runway to be either black or indigenous. The quota has subsequently been repealed, but have you noticed an improvement in diversity since?
I can tell there’s been much improvement when comparing today’s situation on the Brazilian runways, to that of the year 2009/2010. But it’s far from ideal. It’s an endless discussion where on the one side, you have designers accusing the agencies of not providing them with enough black models. On the other side, you have agencies claiming they don’t provide designers with more black models since they don’t book them.
In a country as ethnically diverse as Brazil, featuring white models on magazine covers is considered the norm, while models of colour are considered the exception. How so?
Brazilian magazines don’t put black models on the cover as much as you would imagine. I remember that while I was in journalism school, I was taught that Brazilians don’t like to seea reflectionof themselveson magazine covers. That Brazilians would look for something more glamorous, strongly influenced by a European aesthetic. It’s typical of the low self-esteem you’ll find in many formerly colonized countries.
Since 2011, Vogue Brasil produces an annual issue entirely dedicated to models of colour. Why is such an issue necessary in Brazil?
It was about changing attitudes. Many designers didn’t even consider the lack of black models an issue at first. We didn’t just want to create a buzz, and it’s not as though we only want to put a black model on the cover once a year. When we did it for the first time in 2011, we put Emanuela de Paula on the cover. This year’s issue featured Naomi Campbell as a cover girl. A positive thing to note, is that since that first issue in 2011, the initiative has been well-received in Brazil. We didn’t receive any negative feedback, and in terms of sales it also does well. In addition, it has triggered local modelling agencies to contact us as soon as they scout a black girl.
You’ve frequently placed Naomi Campbell on your cover, and for the February issue Vogue Brasil featured Jourdan Dunn on its cover for the first time. Why not use your covers as a launching pad for the careers of black Brazilian models however?
The Brazilian audience responds to models thatit knows. It’s a shame, but I don’t have Brazilian black models that are known enough to put on the cover. This is why we use girls like Naomi, Jourdan and Joan Smalls. We do push for black Brazilian models to be featured in the front of book, and we aim to put 3 to 4 black or mulatta models on the cover each year. Throughout the year 2016 we’ve tried to cast as many dark skin black models as possible, which was a mission I set out with our fashion team. It’s not like it’s forbidden to use a white girl for a story, but when I notice our stylists have done three consecutive stories with a white girl, I’ll tell them to change things up.
Often the level of diversity on runways and in advertisem*nts, reflects the amount of ethnic diversity behind the scenes. Would you say that black Brazilian designers are strongly represented in your local fashion industry?
I never thought of that, but indeed. In Brazil, fashion is still something that is very much connected to the white elite. We don’t have a lot of black designers or stylists. As fashion is starting to become more popular however, it attracts more people from different ethnic and social backgrounds. When I look at my current team of interns for example, there is a much higher level of ethnic diversity than when I started this job 11 years ago.
How have you seen the attitude of Brazilian modelling agencies evolve over the past years, when it comes to their scouting practices?
Agencies were lazier in the past. When they’d scout for models they would only look in the Southeast region of Brazil – which is the land of white girls. It’s the richer part of the country and it’s where Brazil’s fashion industry is based. Most who live in this part of the country are of Italian or German descent and many of our top models come from this region. So it’s not just a matter of skin tone, where you come from is also a factor. Step by step this is changing, as more girls are being scouted in the North region of the country as well. Our stylists are constantly on the lookout also, so we’re changing the trend of waiting for the agencies.
Are local mass market brands more likely to feature black models in their ad campaigns, compared to upmarket brands?
For advertisem*nts, they often want the famous Brazilian models. They’ll go for Isabeli Fontana, Alessandra Ambrosio or Gisele. You’ll see very few new faces in local ads. So the challenge is to make the black girls more famous by having them appear on the runway constantly and in the magazines.
So how do you see the situation developing in the next 3 years?
The first step is to increase the level of diversity on the runway. The second step is to increase the level of diversity on magazine covers. I’d say we’ve accomplished our goal once we’re able to put black models on the cover without anyone even commenting. In Brazil there is no reason for black not to be considered mainstream.
Click through the gallery to see some of Brazil’s most promising black models of the moment.
