The elephant in the dressing room
At the close of last year a series of shockwaves hit the fashion industry, the most powerful of which followed the death from anorexia of Brazilian model Ana Carolina Reston last November.
But the tragic loss of a model wasn't the only event to rock the fashion world; in September the organisers of Madrid Fashion Week had already caused controversy by turning away models they considered too thin - in other words those with a body mass index, or BMI, below 18.
While fashion's detractors claimed it was hard to decide which was more shattering - the death of a model, or the fashion world's recognition that eating disorders were a problem - one thing was beyond dispute; both events were an indictment of an industry that had long extorted too high a price from the ethereal "stick-thin" creatures on its catwalks.
The elephant in the room had made itself noticed.
Unable to ignore it any longer, Italian fashion houses took up the cause, while calls from the British Government to follow Madrid's lead grew louder and more persistent. It was only a matter of time before the debate spread to these shores.
Accordingly, January 2007 saw the Australian Fashion Council (AFC) reveal plans to tackle eating disorders head on in its February board meeting. This will be followed by a wider reaching forum in March to include representatives from Rosemount Australian Fashion Week (RAFW), L'Oréal Melbourne Fashion Festival (LMFF) and trade fair Fashion Exposed, as well as from The Australian Medical Association and eating disorder charity The Butterfly Foundation. It is hoped leading model agencies will participate, while the AFC will also confer with its counterparts in the UK and US on how to tackle the issue.
For its part, fashion week organiser IMG Asia Pacific has also been assessing global fallout of the Madrid clampdown, and is conducting "internal research" to gauge whether underweight models represent a serious issue in Australia.
IMG marketing and communications director Graeme Lewsey says his organisation will also investigate whether to implement the BMI.
In addressing the question of whether eating disorders represented a serious issue in some quarters of the industry, Lewsey claims that for the moment at least it is "impossible to have an opinion" on the subject.
"I will say that it certainly seems to be a toHowever Butterfly Foundation CEO Claire Vickery dismisses lingering doubts over the existence and gravity of eating disorders as "ridiculous".
Australian fashion was prey to a systemic disparity between reality and aspiration, she says.
"Some years ago we staged a fashion show designed to promote a healthy body image. The models were real women ranging from size 10 through to 16 and a number of mainstream fashion labels lent their product in those sizes. These girls could not even fit one leg into jeans that were meant to be size 14."
Designer Leesa Fogarty is a devoted campaigner against eating disorders who has worked extensively with the Butterfly Foundation. Her swimwear label Marajoara caused a stir at RAFW in Melbourne last September by using "real women" in its catwalk show.
Fogarty welcomes the debate, citing cases of 180 centimetre tall models weighing 50 kilos and being told by their agents to lose weight, while stressing agents are only part of the problem.
"There are certainly some designers out there who support the 'you can't be too thin or too rich' mentality. Designers have a responsibility to decide what role models they want to create."
On the flip side of the coin is model agency Moda director Anica Vuckovic. Vuckovic defends agencies' position, claiming most are simply reacting to client demand.
"We are big believers that health is beauty, and we encourage our models to look after themselves with healthy eating programs and exercise regimes."
Meanwhile, designer Belinda Fairbanks - whose signature look favours a curvaceous body - attributes at least some of the blame to the media.
"When it [the media] has complete control over what we are shown on television and in magazines the public cannot escape it."
In fairness, selected consumer magazines have worked to redress this perception; one is Cleo magazine, which now devotes a set percentage of its pages to plus size models. Many commentators are also noting a mood change, with fashion designer and former model Jodhi Meares - who hosts TV show Australia's Next Top Model - predicting fuller-figure women will dominate the catwalks in coming years as a result of the current debate.
But, according to the AFC managing director Zoe Edquist, such optimism might well be premature.
Edquist says eating disorders still represent "a widespread problem for women, and more widespread within the fashion community than elsewhere". She hopes the forum in March will shed some light on what she defines as a complex issue.
One of the meeting's main aims will be to examine the BMI itself. Calculated using a weight to height ratio that deemed a score of 19 to 25 as "normal", Edquist says it is by no means failsafe.
"It's very important to get the medical fraternity on board with this debate. We need to establish whether the BMI really is an accurate enough indicator of an eating disorder."
Encouraging agencies and fashion show organisers to recognise other warning signs - including poor hair and skin condition or depression - could prove a more effective safeguard than BMI, Edquist says, adding the legal implications of its use would also need consideration.
"The AFC will be talking to the Equal Opportunities Commission regarding the possibility of perceived discrimination against young models who are not anorexic but have a naturally low BMI."
Whether or not it was implemented in Australia, Edquist says the Madrid authorities' implementation of the BMI has undoubtedly sparked a much-needed debate on fashion's dangerous ability to distort.
"In my view even more serious than the six foot giraffes we see on the catwalks is the retouching that is now widespread throughout the fashion media. You've got all these young girls looking at magazines when they are only 14-years-old and thinking that what they are seeing is reality.
"Sometimes it's hard not to wonder how on earth we ended up in this insane situation."