A fashion season can be defined as much by the people on the catwalk as it can by the clothes they are wearing. This time around, a key moment came at the end of Marc Jacobs’ New York show, when an almost makeup-free Christy Turlington made a rare return to the catwalk, aged 50 . While this is hardly ancient in the real world, it is in modelling, where the average catwalk model is around 18. A few days later, Simone Rocha arguably upped the ante.
Campaigns such as MAC’s demonstrate a shift in attitudes. “Older women are usually forced into either rosy ‘mother-of-the-bride’ makeup or the New York-eccentric caricature of bug-eyed glasses and bright clothes,” says MAC’s Terry Barber. “What people enjoy about this campaign is seeing older women who look very different from one another, are very stylish, and are not just there to tick the diversity box. Consumers are constantly offered ‘fixes’ or told how to hide wrinkles.
Having Jane Fonda, 81, on the cover generated a buzz. “This has really spoken to me. Loved it,” read one of the 700-plus comments on Enninful’s Instagram post of the cover. “Beauty is truly ageless. I hope we see more of this in all aspects of the industry,” read another. “It’s hard to believe in an anti-wrinkle cream if it’s shown on a younger woman who is unlikely to have any,” says Renia Jaz, 53, whose blog and Instagram account @venswifestyle are dedicated to ageless style. “We are not ashamed of the changes happening to our hair, face and body, and we want brands to respect that.”