Meghan Noelle wrote:
That's because Tess Munster is not the norm of people that weight. She is gorgeous and excels at what she does.

That being said, I am extremely happy for her but I hope this doesn't make people think that anything goes for every genre of modeling.

I agree.
I think also the main reason she's now being represented is because of her social media celebrity.If she wasn't well known I don't think she would've got represented.But either way Tess is awesome.

Daren King wrote:
Her body size represents a pretty big share of American women.   However, I don't think those types of women are generally influenced by models to buy certain clothing.

I don't American women of any size are influenced by what models are wearing.If anything the average woman is probably more influenced by celebrity style more than anything.

Daren King wrote:
Her body size represents a pretty big share of American women.   However, I don't think those types of women are generally influenced by models to buy certain clothing.

Yeah, 2/3rd of Americans (not just women) are now overweight and even morbidly obese.

Even childhood obesity has risen so high, that the youngster growing up with degenerative diseases that have mostly occurred in people close to retirement...

AnnAdB wrote:
I am not really supportive of this. I am happy for her as a person, but I don't think this should be the "rolemodel." You can often see signs of medicine use that makes people overweight. You can often see signs of medicine use or overweight by food. In this case I am almost sure that it's food. And I don't think that that's a good example. You can hold more water, but then you would just look a bit more "bloated". You can get a slower metabolism or more hunger. But all these three combined can still not create this body.

I understand that the agency wants to make money but is this the way to go?

Yes; you have girls that are unhealthy thin, but this is the other extreme. I know agencies that warn models for getting to thin so there are definitely agencies that feel a certain responsibility towards their models. And this is in my opinion the same thing.

Yes; there are really thin girls and yes there are overweight people, just by their build. But a size 50 with a 1.68 body height? I basically fit in there 3 times. Like I said before; if you do the math it cannot be because of medicine use. And therefore is a bad example. It's like giving people an excuse like; You are not this yet so you are allright. No, even people who are a little overweight due to food should mind it. That is why I think a body type who is in the middle is the best option: 38/40. It hopefully gives motivation for people who are overweight to still look after themselves and work out and eat healthy and not just 'give up'. And it allows thin girls to give them the idea that they don't have to hold their body to be okay. You can be a little more but still be healthy. This is just below the average Dutch size but 30% of adults are overweight so I think it would be a good impulse.

They already covered this in the article......." the way we treat other human beings should have nothing to do with their BMI. Just as the way in which we appreciate beauty and art shouldn’t have to do with the subject’s number on that digital bathroom scale."  - this................the rest is none of our damn business. We should be able to appreciate the art and move on and not stand in judgment of people. 

As far as role models....you don't need them.  The problem is we put people on a pedestal and that's the first mistake. Admire someone's accomplishments sure, want to be like them...no, instead be yourself. Be your best self.  Forget role models. That's just my take on it...LOL

Marin Photography NYC wrote:
As far as role models....you don't need them.  The problem is we put people on a pedestal and that's the first mistake. Admire someone's accomplishments sure, want to be like them...no, instead be yourself. Be your best self.  Forget role models. That's just my take on it...LOL

That is true, but the thing is; she is being put out there as a role model and the agency should be aware of that and their role in it as well.

Besides; it is in our natural behaviour to put people or gods or whatever on a pedestal. They already did that thousand of years ago.

And; someone who is extremely thin but is still happy about herself will never get a contract. Why? Because we tend to categorize that as unhealthy. Why not with obesitas? Why do we not see the danger and issue there? It is like everyone is just being okay with it because it is already such a big problem and it seems like there is "nothing we can do about it."

AnnAdB wrote:

And; someone who is extremely thin but is still happy about herself will never get a contract.

um you do realize that many models who are agency represented could be considered as extremely thin? Are you implying that all agency represented models are plus size? I have yet to come across an agency model (non plus size) that wasn't at least a size four or smaller.I'm not saying this is a bad thing but I'm just pointing out that your statement is false.

Women at any size are constantly being criticized about their weight. As a woman, you shouldn't be contributing to body shaming.This type of bully behavior contributes to women and young girls hating themselves, their bodies, and could contribute to depression.

Tess isn't promoting obesity, she's promoting self love for all women of all sizes.

Alannah Jones Styling wrote:
Tess isn't promoting obesity, she's promoting self love for all women of all sizes.

Loving yourself is important however loving you lifestyle choices despite the life you're living being unhealthy can be dangerous.  If you're a heroine addict and you're proud of yourself to the point where you wanna show it off to everyone and tell them being addicted to drugs is awesome it's not necessarily a good thing.  We should love ourselves enough to take care of ourselves and better ourselves.

Laura Bello Retouching wrote:

Loving yourself is important however loving you lifestyle choices despite the life you're living being unhealthy can be dangerous.  If you're a heroine addict and you're proud of yourself to the point where you wanna show it off to everyone and tell them being addicted to drugs is awesome it's not necessarily a good thing.  We should love ourselves enough to take care of ourselves and better ourselves.

Of course being obese isn't ideal.But how does someone else's weight affect you and your daily life?

Also comparing weight to heroin is insensitive to both life styles.Losing weight is nowhere as difficult as getting off heroin.

Also, does being a certain weight make it okay for people (besides your doctor) to accuse you of being unhealthy?

Alannah Jones Styling wrote:
um you do realize that many models who are agency represented could be considered as extremely thin? Are you implying that all agency represented models are plus size? I have yet to come across an agency model (non plus size) that wasn't at least a size four or smaller.I'm not saying this is a bad thing but I'm just pointing out that your statement is false.

Well, I was anorexic for 4 years and with my 114 lbs and 5"11 I was clearly underweight. However, most people said they didn't saw a thing about me in the beginning (yes I already weighed 114 lbs) obviously because I was always slender. But the fact that I lost 22 lbs and no one noticed was quite shocking.

To look unhealthy thin it is not just about a slender build, it takes a while for muscles to demolish. It takes a while to really see physical effects and not just being very skinny. That is why I am saying that those people would not get a contract. It is clear that that is not healthy.

In my opinion; extremely diet skinny should not be promoted, as well as severely obese. If you will promote it people would think that that is okay. And it is not. I am not saying that you should hate your body or anything. Believe me, I know how hating your body feels. But self-acceptence is something different than what the media prescribes. Self-acceptence doesn't mean you can just do whatever you want. In my opinion self-acceptence is also taking care of your body. And you do not just do that with fancy clothes.

Alannah Jones Styling wrote:

Of course being obese isn't ideal.But how does someone else's weight affect you and your daily life?

Also comparing weight to heroin is insensitive to both life styles.Losing weight is nowhere as difficult as getting off heroin.

Also, does being a certain weight make it okay for people (besides your doctor) to accuse you of being unhealthy?

It doesn't but i feel like she herself promotes her size as something to be happy about.  After all never does she say 'with my size comes serious health risks and if you are this size it should be your goal to get down to a healthy weight' she's reassuring other women who are of a similar body type that there's nothing wrong with it and they shouldn't make any effort to better themselves or their body.  I guarantee any medical doctor would advise her to lose weight.  And like I said models are often meant to represent what's beautiful in society.  If people see an unhealthy habit as being desirable they often tend to want to copy it.

And if you don't like the heroine comparison why not cigarettes? Years ago they were shown everywhere as something that made you cool and sexy.  Now that we know the dangers of smoking it's rarely shown to make someone look sexy or appealing despite the many people that smoke, in fact it's often shown negatively for good reason.

And while she herself may not ever have health problems (which I very much doubt) people of her size and shape are at serious risk to have serious health issues come with their weight just like smoking doesn't guarantee health issues but it certainly is very very common among smokers and raises all kinds of risks for serious health issues and something that shouldn't be made 'sexy' because it's unhealthy.

Koryn wrote:
I don't get how people equate size "acceptance" with obesity "promotion."

The only thing that's being promoted is the understanding that there are many different types and builds of people, and they all have a spot in the marketplace.

Models exist to sell products. Using a big woman in an ad (or a slim woman, or a whatever kind of person) isn't promoting that individual's body-type, but the clothing or accessories that are ON the person's body.

However different body types/looks aren't really being represented that much outside of weight.  I'm guessing there are far more short women out there than overweight women and yet the models that are supposed to represent us are nearly always 5'8'' and above.  Aside from that there is very little variety in a models appearance, it's not like we're having homely girls model maybelline or girls with acne modeling coverup even if they're the ones buying it..  I'm guessing there are many plus sized girls out there but there are probably very few models that are her exact size, she's far from average.  Advertising isn't about being representative of anything it's about making the product look desirable by having women who are meant to be seen as desirable.

Laura Bello Retouching wrote:

It doesn't but i feel like she herself promotes her size as something to be happy about.  After all never does she say 'with my size comes serious health risks and if you are this size it should be your goal to get down to a healthy weight' she's reassuring other women who are of a similar body type that there's nothing wrong with it and they shouldn't make any effort to better themselves or their body.  I guarantee any medical doctor would advise her to lose weight.  And like I said models are often meant to represent what's beautiful in society.  If people see an unhealthy habit as being desirable they often tend to want to copy it.

And if you don't like the heroine comparison why not cigarettes? Years ago they were shown everywhere as something that made you cool and sexy.  Now that we know the dangers of smoking it's rarely shown to make someone look sexy or appealing despite the many people that smoke, in fact it's often shown negatively for good reason.

And while she herself may not ever have health problems (which I very much doubt) people of her size and shape are at serious risk to have serious health issues come with their weight just like smoking doesn't guarantee health issues but it certainly is very very common among smokers and raises all kinds of risks for serious health issues and something that shouldn't be made 'sexy' because it's unhealthy.

Your comparison between obesity and smoking is a good one.

AnnAdB wrote:
That is true, but the thing is; she is being put out there as a role model and the agency should be aware of that and their role in it as well.

Besides; it is in our natural behaviour to put people or gods or whatever on a pedestal. They already did that thousand of years ago.

And; someone who is extremely thin but is still happy about herself will never get a contract. Why? Because we tend to categorize that as unhealthy. Why not with obesitas? Why do we not see the danger and issue there? It is like everyone is just being okay with it because it is already such a big problem and it seems like there is "nothing we can do about it."

Wrong....she got a job, where did she sign up to be some fucking role model?....No one asks to be a role model.

It is not human nature to put people on a pedestal, the media does that.  You don't need to worship anyone or anything if you don't want to. You can admire someone's accomplishment and still be yourself. 

As far as being thin and not getting a contract, maybe there is more to it? Maybe you haven't thought about that. It has a lot to do with having a marketable look as well.  It's more than just size matters.

ddtphoto wrote:
Good for her... I guess.

There's definitely a difference between "plus size" and obese though. Tess is obese and it just doesn't look very healthy nor is it something to be encouraged. It's nice that a fat kid can come home crying and check out Tess' twitter feed or whatever, and feel like they're not alone, but at the same time what they really need to be doing is exercise and eating right.

I totally agree with you here. Yes, we're not their doctors and know their charts/exact numbers, but a person can clearly tell what appears to be unhealthy on either side of the spectrum (large or thin). Both extremes have potentially dangerous, and lethal consequences. For Tess's case, it'd be kidney strain, possible heart failure, and joint problems.

She's going to be in the public spotlight now a lot more, and thus, a public figure. Some people might look up to her, because of this status. From a public health standpoint, this is "dangerous" in the sense that, while a person not might outright say "I SUPPORT BEING OVERWEIGHT", at the same time, the subconscious influence is put there because "normal" status people want to achieve "Celebrity" type status :l

Shon D.- Femme wrote:
Am I allowed to point out that I don't feel inspired by "body type diversity" when that "diversity" is always racially homogenous? Am I allowed to point out the sheer number of models of color (mainly black models) who bust their asses to fit into industry standards who never get signed or get work? Or does that become a "Soapbox" comment?

From a runway photographer's POV, who shoots shows, even small shows on assignments, I can tell you that I have shot a lot of fashion shows, catering to the obese black models, celebrating their weight and acceptance as beautiful and local designers who design clothing for BBW, I even shot BET's Rip The Runway with obese models who are black.

You might get one or two Caucasian models on the runway... but... out of around 2,000 fashion shows I have shot, I have never shot one that was dedicated to the obese white model... only for designers that are addressing the overweight "Big Black Women"...

Cree Synster wrote:

I totally agree with you here. Yes, we're not their doctors and know their charts/exact numbers, but a person can clearly tell what appears to be unhealthy on either side of the spectrum (large or thin). Both extremes have potentially dangerous, and lethal consequences. For Tess's case, it'd be kidney strain, possible heart failure, and joint problems.

She's going to be in the public spotlight now a lot more, and thus, a public figure. Some people might look up to her, because of this status. From a public health standpoint, this is "dangerous" in the sense that, while a person not might outright say "I SUPPORT BEING OVERWEIGHT", at the same time, the subconscious influence is put there because "normal" status people want to achieve "Celebrity" type status :l

I think it's interesting that you both make a point to say that you don't know anything about their body or lifestyle but feel confident to diagnose them with various potential illnesses. It shows how little most people understand about how differently people's bodies work and how many assumptions we make based on a very surface-level glance.

You can assume about as much about a fat person's health and lifestyle as you can about a skinny person. If you assume that a fat person does no exercise and only eats unhealthy foods, is it then fair to say that all skinny people exercise regularly and eat nothing but the best foods? Obviously not.

And even so, it's not like even if she or any other fat person ate like a pig - it's still their choice. We don't tend to chastise smokers or people who have other dangerous habits to nearly the same extent we do with big folks. Honestly, I really don't think getting more tubby people into modelling is not going to promote unhealthy behaviour. If anything it'll do the opposite, as people who suffer from body image issues will have more opportunities to feel good about their bodies. There will be less stigma, less missinformation and it will help get rid of the body shaming culture which affects basically everyone negatively. A small step towards that obviously, but still a step.

So yeah, good work to Tess. She's awesome. ^_^

udor wrote:
From a runway photographer's POV, who shoots shows, even small shows on assignments, I can tell you that I have shot a lot of fashion shows, catering to the obese black models, celebrating their weight and acceptance as beautiful and local designers who design clothing for BBW, I even shot BET's Rip The Runway with obese models who are black.

You might get one or two Caucasian models on the runway... but... out of around 2,000 fashion shows I have shot, I have never shot one that was dedicated to the obese white model... only for designers that are addressing the overweight "Big Black Women"...

Yes, there are niches that have been created because the mainstream refuses to make room for minorities. I am talking about mainstream spaces. The plus size modeling industry is not a small niche anymore. It is its own institutions with standards and regulations that still closely mimic the modeling world at large.

Those spaces are not typically diverse in any other way but dress size. Looking at the boards of most major plus model agencies confirms that.

Nogawd Photography wrote:
Great, now more debates about what is plus........

Great, now more debates on how what someone looks like determines if they eat right, exercise, or are healthy.

If people followed her they would know that the woman has a trainer and goes to the gym, lol. Size doesn't determine anything, including health. Like people have already mentioned, health is determined personally in co-ordinance with your own Primary Physician.

Kahula wrote:

Great, now more debates on how what someone looks like determines if they eat right, exercise, or are healthy.

If people followed her they would know that the woman has a trainer and goes to the gym, lol. Size doesn't determine anything, including health. Like people have already mentioned, health is determined personally in co-ordinance with your own Primary Physician.

+1

martin b wrote:
Last time I was in the USA i tried on a pair of 34" pants.  They weren't actually 34.  They were a 38"  Someone told me Americans use fashion size instead of the real size.  And the average woman is a fashion size 14?  I can see why they need the larger models.  It makes sense at least.

It's gotten worse in recent years.

I ACTUALLY wear about a size 8 in women's pants (25/26 inch waist, 38 inch hips). That's the size I wore from about 2007, after I lost 30 some pounds, up until a couple of years ago. I've stayed pretty much the same size for the past 7 years, but TODAY when I go try on pants, instead of the size 8s, I have to buy 4s.

I am not a size 4. I have not been a size 4 since I was probably 10 years old.

It's all vanity sizing.

Jean Renard Photography wrote:
good for her, but so what?

She will do for folks that look like her what Kate Moss did for all shorter models, lure them into thinking there is in fact a real and growing market, 20 years later there is still only one Kate Moss.

The market has  not changed very much in all that time, Hollywood stars all have body clauses in their contracts and 99% of fashion belongs to the tall skinny models or celebrities.

+1