Alex Perry Slams The Fashion Industry For Allowing Thin Models On The Catwalk

Alex Perry might have featured a worryingly thin model in his 2014 Fashion Week show, but the designer has certainly learned his lesson since then.

Unfortunately, at Virgin Australia Melbourne Fashion Festival this week, another thin model was snapped wearing his clothes on the catwalk – this time without his prior knowledge.

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Perry spoke out about the model overnight, saying it was high time the fashion industry stopped employing unhealthy looking girls.

“Unfortunately, I don’t have anything to do with the casting at that event,” Perry told news.com.au. “In the past I cast a girl who was too thin and I stood up for myself. I knew that I made a mistake. But I had nothing to do with this.

“Whoever the casting director is, or the people who are involved with putting that show together, they need to put their hands up and say ‘This isn’t right’. Everybody has a responsibility. It’s up to the designers, the event organisers, the model’s agents. But everyone seems to get off scot-free. Like hang on, ‘Why are you promoting that girl?’

“If the girl never got out of the gates in the first place, we wouldn’t be having this conversation.”

Perry also urged other fashion designers to speak out about body image, saying they should all be held accountable.

“Everyone sticks their heads in the sand, but every other designer books girls like that. Put your hand up and say something about it.”

In 2014, Perry famously cast a worryingly thin Cassi Van Den Dungen in his fashion week show, which prompted marie claire publisher Jackie Frank to publicly speak out about the importance of healthy models on the runway.

“When I saw a particular girl at the Alex Perry show coming down the runway, I got an absolute shock,” said Frank at the time. “I felt I needed to do something; it just wasn’t sitting right with me. I was really worried for her, so I picked up the phone and called her agent.”

Frank says she didn’t want the coverage of the week to be about the “skinny models” but she knew the conversation would start once she spotted the model in question on the runway.

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“There are fantastic designers here this week doing incredible things, but that girl stood out and looked unhealthy,” said Frank.
“I said to her agent, I don’t think she should be on the runway at the moment,” Frank said. “I think she needs to work on her body and take time off to become healthy again.”

Since Frank spoke out, Perry and a number of other designers have made a point to include models of all sizes in their runway shows.