Wendy McClure

Author and Professional Obsessive.

Menu
  • Home
  • About Wendy
  • Books
    • Books for Adults
      • The Wilder Life
      • I’m Not the New Me
      • Other Books and Anthologies
    • Books for Kids
      • A Garden to Save the Birds
      • It’s a Pumpkin!
      • The Princess and the Peanut Allergy
      • Wanderville
      • Wanderville 2: On Track for Treasure
      • Wanderville 3: Escape to the World’s Fair
  • More
    • Media and Publications
    • Wanderville Extras
    • Book Clubs and School Visits
  • Contact

Le sans culottes

October 6, 2006 by Wendy

So everyone is talking about how bold Jean-Paul Gaultier was to have a plus size model in his runway show. A plus size model with no pants on.

But what the hell else is she supposed to wear at a Jean-Paul Gaultier show? Because it’s not like he makes pants her size. For fuck’s sake.

Filed Under: Body, popcult

Comments

  1. mar says

    October 6, 2006 at 8:54 am

    What bothered me about her was that he made her out to be ugly. Why the stupid outfit and hair? The model behind her was in a simple red dress without outrageous hair or makeup.

    I understand the point he’s tryig to make and it s–ks! Plus sized women can, and are, also beautiful and he made a mockery of that even more.

  2. Jeremy says

    October 6, 2006 at 11:49 am

    My favorite part of the article was when he said the materials were inspired by robots and androids. You know, all those robots and androids he knows. Here in reality. That give hime ideas.

  3. Kellie says

    October 6, 2006 at 11:55 am

    AHAHAHAHAHA that’s the same thing that I thought! Besides, that’s honestly the first time that I’ve been turned on by a model in a fashion show.

  4. Amy says

    October 6, 2006 at 2:44 pm

    As a fat chick I have to say it is a step in the right direction… even if it is a pantless one. Not sure my pinky toe would even fit a size 2!!

  5. Lisa says

    October 6, 2006 at 7:52 pm

    What a slap in the face to plus-sized models! He made her as ugly as he could and he further made her stand out by putting her in butt-ugly lingerie when the rest of the collection was sportswear. Nice.

  6. Louise says

    October 6, 2006 at 8:59 pm

    Excellent French Revolution-inspired title for this post…well played.

  7. nancy says

    October 7, 2006 at 1:14 pm

    It’s good. No matter what else. At least it’s an acknowledgement by a top fashion designer that overweight people exist for christ sakes. (Even though he doesn’t make size 26 or whatever). It’s still inclusion for once. Gaultier also put “plus size” model Crystal Renn in his spring 2006 show. She looked beautiful.
    http://www.style.com/slideshows/fashionshows/S2006RTW/JPGAULTI/RUNWAY/00590m.jpg

  8. linsee says

    October 7, 2006 at 4:36 pm

    when i first saw that article, i thought “hey that’s kind of cool”. then i actually thought about it, and did the exact same thing. i searched to see if the fashion label even makes plus sized clothing, or plans on it.

    i’m all for making a statement, but seems like there was nothing to back it up. seems he just did it for shock value.

  9. Stew says

    October 7, 2006 at 11:17 pm

    I love mykull. Just saying. He’s the cutest, and I bet you miss him. He was at my party tonight and i had a lot of beer. Sorry for cluttering up comments but I wanted to know you have good friends.

    xxoo

  10. Stew says

    October 7, 2006 at 11:20 pm

    Wasn’t that oh so relevant? I rock.

    The model was made to look yikky. That sucks.

  11. Satya says

    October 8, 2006 at 7:47 am

    Yes, it would have been a much more sincere gesture if he’d put her in actual clothes from his line. Like, if he’d taken five outfits and sewn them all together. But putting her in that getup made her a spectacle, not part of the show. A truly revolutionary act would be to show her to be just as beautiful as everybody else.

  12. Jane says

    October 8, 2006 at 9:04 pm

    I wonder what made her agree to go on in such a bizarre get-up. The look on her face says, “I’m having that nightmare where suddenly I am on a runway, half-naked, and I realize I forgot to put my coulottes on”. But she isn’t waking up from that nightmare. I hope her mother doesn’t have to see that picture.

  13. Frances says

    October 9, 2006 at 4:42 pm

    I wish she had been beautifully attired **sigh
    Thanks for sharing.
    Frances

  14. Jess the Mess says

    October 10, 2006 at 5:42 am

    Wow. Crystal Renn is unbelievably gorgeous. She looks like a painting. I’m surprised I don’t see her more often. I can honestly say she blows about 99% of all other models (plus size or no) out of the water.

  15. Ursula says

    October 10, 2006 at 5:07 pm

    Now why did he have to go to such an extreme? 132kg is approproximately 290lbs. And as such, this model while attractive in her own right is not an accurate representation of the middle range that we are looking to see reflected in fashion magazines, shows, etc.

  16. Randa says

    October 11, 2006 at 8:37 am

    I love the photos! I don’t care if Gaultier was trying to make a statement or not. I don’t give a fuck about him or about any other designer. I just love *her*. She’s so articulate and badass in interviews, where people are basically discriminating against her openly to her face, and she strongly tells them facts and truths and shuts them down:
    blogs.smh.com.au/entertainment/archives/fashion_season/006613.html
    Also, I think she looks SOOOOOO hot! I don’t understand why people are freaking out about her hair. She wears her hair big and frizzy in her day-to-day life. Also, I’m lovin’ the panties! So sexy.

  17. Randa says

    October 11, 2006 at 8:42 am

    Also, it’s breaking my heart how many people are reacting to this photo with “She looks ugly”. Wow. Feel free to cavort with some shallow frat boys; you’ll fit right in.

  18. Wendy says

    October 11, 2006 at 8:52 am

    Hey Randa, I just read your site like an hour ago and followed the link to that interview. And the stuff she said changed my mind about this a little bit. More on this later.

  19. Randa says

    October 11, 2006 at 9:14 am

    w,
    That’s cool. This is really benign compared to what people are saying all over the web. there’s some really UGLY stuff being said. It’s really disheartening. But then I go back to my fat acceptance sites and i remind myself that this is part of the evil plan of Big Capitalism.
    hugs,
    r

  20. Andy says

    October 12, 2006 at 10:20 am

    Well…regardless whether or not you like it, it was done for artistic reasons. But what makes me shake my head is that i think I understand his reason…its nothing more than cheap sesationalism, a vulgar display of smarmy political corectness marquarading as open mindedness that really says “look at the freak eveyone, hows THAT for a juxtiposition?”

    Thank god ‘sexy’ is a state of mind….

  21. Ann says

    October 24, 2006 at 12:03 pm

    I agree with Andy (and Wendy’s later entry). If I thought for one minute that Gaultier was actually going to design clothes for a large woman, I’d be encouraged. I think it’s just a stunt and he thought he was using her. Fortunately, she’s too smart to let herself be used, and used the event to her own advantage.

  22. NuggetMaven says

    November 3, 2006 at 10:47 am

    Color me “Late Kate,” but I am just glad for all of “Fatness-Kind” that JPG did not dress her in a hideous muumuu (sp?), or anything drop waisted or boat necked… the universal wardrobe malfunction for our mother’s generation of dealing with one’s shape.

    I think Velvet is gorgeous regardless. It takes alot of courage to put yourself out there like that. Hell, I won’t even wear a red cocktail dress because it draws too much attention to me… and despite that, I like to think I accept myself, cellulite and all.

  23. Tangerine Jones says

    November 8, 2006 at 7:34 am

    Some of you guys are missing the point entirely. It is a powerful statement to glamour iconography when people who remotely look like us are included. While strides still need to be made when it comes to larger folk and fashion, Gaultier has given us visibility. When you are presented with that kind of opportunity, you use it to your advantage and to the gain of others. This is what Velvet is doing. She’s intelligent, beautiful and gives dimension in more ways than one.

    A plus-sized woman in a couture fashion show in lingerie no less? As one of the only zaftig burlesque performers in the world, I face the challenge everytime I get on stage of people thinking I have no right to be there because I’m not a tiny chica. What JPG and Velvet are doing does take huge huge cajones. They are challenging people’s way of thinking and personal prejudices. As for the money end of it, the best way to evoke change is to demonstrate how powerful we are as a buying force. Once people realize there’s money to be made, then you will see change.

  24. Anita says

    June 7, 2007 at 6:35 pm

    Curvy girls can look pretty good in lingerie! Just have a look at: http://www.ohsocurvy.com.au featuring just a few models in plus size lingerie. I’m working with a few models now to replace all the manufactures photos with those of real women.

Archives

  • March 2016
  • January 2014
  • December 2012
  • July 2012
  • May 2012
  • April 2012
  • December 2011
  • November 2011
  • September 2011
  • April 2011
  • March 2011
  • February 2011
  • December 2010
  • November 2010
  • October 2010
  • September 2010
  • July 2010
  • May 2010
  • February 2010
  • December 2009
  • July 2009
  • June 2009
  • May 2009
  • April 2009
  • March 2009
  • January 2009
  • December 2008
  • November 2008
  • September 2008
  • August 2008
  • July 2008
  • June 2008
  • May 2008
  • April 2008
  • March 2008
  • February 2008
  • January 2008
  • December 2007
  • November 2007
  • October 2007
  • September 2007
  • August 2007
  • July 2007
  • June 2007
  • May 2007
  • April 2007
  • March 2007
  • February 2007
  • January 2007
  • December 2006
  • November 2006
  • October 2006
  • September 2006
  • August 2006
  • July 2006
  • June 2006
  • May 2006
  • April 2006
  • March 2006
  • February 2006
  • January 2006
  • December 2005
  • November 2005
  • October 2005
  • September 2005
  • August 2005
  • July 2005
  • June 2005
  • May 2005
  • April 2005
  • March 2005
  • February 2005
  • January 2005
  • December 2004
  • November 2004
  • October 2004
  • September 2004
  • August 2004
  • July 2004
  • June 2004
  • May 2004
  • April 2004
  • March 2004
  • February 2004
  • January 2004
  • December 2003
  • November 2003
  • October 2003
  • September 2003
  • August 2003
  • July 2003
  • June 2003
  • May 2003
  • April 2003
  • March 2003
  • February 2003
  • January 2003
  • December 2002
  • November 2002
  • September 2001
  • July 2001
  • May 2001
  • February 2001
  • January 2001

The Wilder Life on Flickr

Recent Press and Links

  • Essay: A Little House Adulthood For the American Masters documentary on Laura Ingalls Wilder, I contributed a piece to the PBS website about revisiting the Little House books.
  • Essay: The Christmas Tape (At Longreads.com) How an old audio tape of holiday music became a record of family history, unspoken rituals, and grief.
  • Q & A With Wendy McClure Publishers Weekly interview about editing, Wanderville and more.

Connect with me

Visit Us On TwitterVisit Us On FacebookVisit Us On Instagram

Where else to find Wendy

  • Candyboots Home of the Weight Watcher recipe cards
  • Malcolm Jameson Site (in progress) about my great-grandfather, a Golden Age sci-fi writer.
  • That Side of the Family My semi-secret family history blog
Copyright © 2023 by Wendy McClure • All Rights Reserved • Site design by Makeworthy Media • Wanderville illustrations by Erwin Madrid