Is This Girl Too Young for Kardashian Contouring?
Kim Kardashian’s makeup artist made contouring cool. So cool, in fact, that it’s the go-to technique in the cosmetics world these days — women’s cheekbones have never been so prominent. The truth is, no one needs contouring unless they’re being photographed for a magazine—especially not a kid. And yet Mario Dedivanovic, the man responsible for Mrs. West’s hour and a half of daily primping, shared an image of his approach on a little girl, child model Harper Tillman, to Instagram. Not surprisingly, there’s an uproar.
“Why do I find this disturbing? Sorry but kids shouldn’t be wearing this type of makeup,” Michelle Chelle wrote. The term “disturbing” gets used time and time again throughout the comments section; many agree that something about the post is a little off. Some even went so far as to claim that dressing a little girl up like an adult makes her a target for child abuse, rape, molestation, and pedophilia. “She’s beautiful but she doesn’t need makeup. That’s too grown. Protect the innocence,” Annastazia Unce, a makeup artist herself, added to the conversation.
But the debate goes both ways, with others defending the photo, clarifying that context is key. Shannon Goldberg noted that the shot was taken for 60’s-themed editorial for Saplings, a high-end fashion magazine for children. “She looks beautiful…end of story,” the mother (whose own kid models) wrote. “Most beautiful model I can ever ask for,” Malky Rosner commented of the child model, Harper Tillman. “This little girl is so beautiful and this is a fashion editorial..love this child.”
To be clear, although Dedivanovic’s under attack, he did not do the makeup on Tillman (that credit goes to David and Josie Mugopus). He just shared the image with the caption, “my future daughter #soCute.” But how cute is it really? There’s a large difference between a child being fascinated with adult cosmetics because they’re emulating their mother, and a girl done up to appear like a grown up for commercial purposes.
It also raises even more questions about the always weird world of child modeling. The practice seems to be necessary within our weird society — Gap Kids needs adorable babies in order to sell onesies — but there’s a fine line between cute and inappropriate. Posing kids in the driver’s seat of a car with a cat eye and pouty smize does seem to fall in the latter category.
Like Tillman’s feature, a story that called 8-year-old model Kristina Pimenova the “most beautiful girl in the world” raised similar concerns. The adolescent’s Instagram handle, managed by her mother, has nearly 900,000 followers and her Facebook fan page has more than 3 million likes. She’s fronted campaigns for many designers’ kids lines including Armani, Benetton, Fendi, and Roberto Cavalli. Her massive social media following means the girl gets critiqued on her looks by strangers around the world. Similarly, designer Laurence Xu closed his recent show in atypical fashion, sending 9-year-old Xiu Qiu down the runway in a “bridal” look (tradition calls for haute couture shows to finish with a wedding gown).
Regardless of how the public reacts to child models, the more important question is whether or not it’s safe. Martina M. Cartwright, a registered dietitian and adjunct professor in the University of Arizona’s department of nutritional sciences, says it’s not. “Intense participation in activities that spotlight physical appearance instills the idea that physical beauty and superficial charm are the keys to success,” she writes, “thus making self-worth and self-esteem inextricably tied to attractiveness.”
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The Dark Underbelly of the Male Modeling World
Calm Down, Willow Smith Isn’t Actually Topless
A 6-Year-Old Is Starring With Joan Smalls in Chanel’s New Ad Campaign
