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Ford Agency Disregards CFDA Guidelines, Pushes Underage Models

Ondria Hardin in Marc Jacobs spring 2012 show.

Just last week, Diane von Furstenberg and the Council of Fashion Designers of America sent out the guidelines for this year’s health initiative, reiterating that no one under 16 will be allowed on the New York runways, and models who are noticeably unhealthy should be dismissed. At least a dozen agencies have signed their agreement — but not Ford.

After the New York Times published a piece noting that Ford represents “at least two models who are under 16 in its portfolio for runway shows this season,” the agency released a statement arguing that they never agreed to follow that guideline in the first place.

A spokesman for Ford released a statement on Wednesday, after the article was published online, saying that, “While we agree with many of the guidelines the C.F.D.A. is working towards, we did not sign on with this particular initiative.”

The statement goes on to say, “We are sorry for the confusion and apologize for not clearing it up right away when it was announced. We take the age and maturity of our models very seriously. We work on a case-by-case basis alongside a prospective model’s parents to make a determination as to whether they are ready to walk the runway. In most cases, the answer is no. But a select few demonstrate the know-how and maturity that are necessary to work earlier than they otherwise would.”

“We have always played a leadership role in protecting the health and wellness of models, and will continue to do so.”

Ford’s underage roster includes Ondria Hardin (who walked for Marc Jacobs last season) and, reportedly, Kremi Otashliyska. Now it will be interesting to see who casts them.

[NYT]



  • http://twitter.com/Winafish Remy Chevalier

    Agencies thrive on fresh faces, which they discover through a vast network of scouts around junior high schools all over the world! They cannot afford to be scooped by other agencies getting at an amazing face before they do, so they have to go in for the kill and sign these girls when they are still way too young to actually work in the grownup industry. It’s all about short term returns for the scouts. If instead, girls who have been found, before they are signed, be allowed to finish high school, before they are thrown on the pages of fashion magazines, they’d be much more intellectually and emotionally rounded to deal with the pressures of the business. Instead they are 16, in Paris, in night clubs, away from home, being preyed upon by every sleazy Arabian oil sheik pretty boy and photographer looking for a quick return on investment with a nude shoot. All the while the bookers keep the girls as naive and socially inept as possible, to preserve their air of freshness and innocence, which is what clients thrive on. A recipe for disaster. Ford has been in so much hot water over the years, so as Elite, with bogus rip-off modeling schools, an army of scouting creeps now glamorized by reality television. I say let the girls fend for themselves, they’ll learn a lot quicker, the smarter ones already book themselves on Model Mayhem, carve their own career, then only sign with agencies on their own terms! It takes agencies out of the scouting game, leaving only girls who know the score gunning for the brass ring.

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