Renée Thompson, has been modeling for 10 years. Originally from Jamaica, she moved to New York to continue pursuing her dream of becoming a top model and hopes to “kill it” at New York Fashion week. Renée manages to keep her hopes high as the fashion industry relentlessly refuses to showcase people of color in their top fashion runway shows. One agent mentions in the short documentary that one of his clients wanted a “white model dipped in chocolate”. Meaning he wants a black girl with the features of a white women. Interesting note, Renée’s body measurements are exact to her competitors, but the way her body curves and her balanced proportion throughout her body immediately signifies her as being too big.

Markets in Asia, South America, and Africa are rising up and they are redefining the look of the runways. Their magazines may hint at the look of the west, but their magazines’ ultimate goal is to reflect their own culture. It is becoming less common to have similarly featured white women walking down the runway. Last year, Italian Vogue featured an entire issue devoted to black women. It sold out in 72 hours.

Louis Vuitton, Gucci, and Prada can say that their demographic are wealthy white women, but I can spit at you some stats of people of color who can throw down for some Gucci. I’m just saying.

Tim Walker is London photographer. His earlier work features documentary and portrait photography. Walker photographs for W, Vanity Fair, as well as the British and Italian Vogue.

“Everything from the gigantic rabbit head hat to the boat hairpiece makes us feel like we fell down a rabbit hole and ended up in a magical (though slightly desolate) version of Versailles.” – Kristen Pisaturo

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