Well here’s a first! Could we possibly see a ‘Project Runway All Stars’ plus size season very soon? If designer and judge Isaac Mizrahi has anything to do with it, yes!
In an interview with Huffpost Live, he talks about the term “plus size” and explains the problem he has with it.
“I wish that the plus size thing was just integrated properly because I don’t want to speak to a plus size woman differently than I speak to a woman,” says the native New York-er.
In his opinion, the right way for fashion to succeed in including men and women of all sides would be to stop segregating sections.
“I don’t like segregation, I like incorporation, I like integration,” he said. “If you’re going to do clothes, you need to do them in a whole size range.”
A viewer asked the question why are so any plus size women underrepresented on the popular fashion reality TV show, and whether he would like to see that change.
“When will PR have contestants who design specifically for plus size persons? Not everyone is a size two and we are underrepresented within the fashion industry. There is no reason why a plus size person cannot be fashionable.” wrote viewer Kathy Sandru.
His response gave an indication, and perhaps a ray of hope, that next the next season of Project Runway All Stars which has just been renewed will be vastly different from the rest.
“You know what, that’s a very good idea!” he starts off saying. “No really, I’m not kidding. It’s just been picked up for another season and I’ll suggest that to the producers. I think that’s a smart challenge.”
Host Caitlyn Becker says that although she is a size 10 and doesn’t need to shop in the plus size section in “real life”, in the fashion world she would be considered plus size if she were a model. She also makes the point that there is a disconnect and it makes her feel like she doesn’t belong.
Isaac concurs. “Plus size is maybe not the best thing to call something.” He says if you are going to design clothes, they should be available in all sizes, and that designers should represent different women’s bodies in a non-condescending way.
That’s probably why model Robyn Lawley and actress Jennifer Lawrence hate the term plus size and “fat” respectively, because of the negative associations surrounding them.
In another part of the interview Isaac announces his dislike for breast implants, instead preferring women to be natural.
“I think women’s bodies are beautiful. They should all be considered beautiful.”
“I’m not a fan of a breast implant,” he said. “There’s just too many of them. It’s becoming, like, almost as acceptable as real ones. And it’s becoming like there’s no distinction between the two…if someone likes a breast implant more than a real breast, I think that’s crazy.”
Whether you like breast implants, or have them or not, we think it’s great that an authority in the fashion world is advocating for women’s natural beauty, rather than trying to change to live up to an unrealistic standard.
Thank you Isaac for putting it in perspective from an insider point of view. Let’s hope more people in the fashion community will follow your lead and think differently when it comes to designing and accommodating for all types of bodies.
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