Is Taping Your Eyes To Look Asian The New Blackface?
By
Connie Wang
The fashion industry and off-color
references have existed as far as camera crews could fly to the
Serengeti, and this latest iteration of race-inspired "homages" has us
feeling queasy. For this Vogue Nippon editorial, Anna Dello
Russo dressed Crystal Renn up in spangly Dolce & Gabbana duds and taped
her temples to pull her eyes back into an almond, Asian shape. Body
modification has been a topic of interest ever since
Gaga explored face
"implants," but is eye-taping just about experimenting with form and
shape with your body (as opposed to your clothes—which is what fashion
is all about), or is there something more icky going on here? Is it
better because it's in an Asian magazine? Does it matter if it's two
white ladies making an editorial for primarily Asian women? What about
Asian women who get eyelid surgery to appear white? Check out the video
below and sound off—do you think this is offensive or just avant-garde?
