Modeling the Good Life: The Hidden Costs of Glamor

• In Event: ICA Plenary Interactive Paper/Poster Session and Reception
  In Interactive Paper Session: Popular Communication Interactive Paper Session

Abstract

Since the dawn of the age of the “blink,” instant communication technologies have piqued interest in and attention to fashion, with the result that a good chunk of fashion modeling work now involves portraying the appearance of living the “good life.” My ethnographic research reveals that models must project the image of living “the life” through constant attention to their ‘look,’ a product comprised of images of their paid work, ‘off duty’ style, and their instagram and twitter feeds. The model ‘look’ also pervades the blogosphere, making the street into a runway. My research uncovers how models normalize the need to be glamorous, to appear to have it all, as a part of everyday life, spreading the demand to be ‘always on’ to the general population, a need exacerbated by the recent shift to social media, and the power of social analytics to quantify influence.

Author

• Elizabeth Wissinger, City University of New York/BMCC