Cara Delevingne On Fashion And Body Image

Behind the designer labels and runway shows, there are aspects of modeling that aren’t so glamorous. In a recent interview with London’s The Times, Cara Delevingne said the fashion industry made her hate her body, and feel "hollow.” Not the reaction you'd expect from one of the industries "it" girls.

Traveling across the world to pose in high end fashion ads for a wide range of well-known brands barely had any effect on Delevingne aside from tacking names onto her professional portfolio, the Paper Towns star told The Times.

“It didn’t make me grow as a human being. And I kind of forgot how young I was. I felt so old," Delevingne said.

Since making the switch from model to actress, Delevingne has continued to give us a deeper insight to the dark side of fashion. Let’s face it, the industry itself exploits models’ bodies for the sake of showcasing a designer’s latest creation and there is also a continuous stream of pressure for these men and women to look a certain way for the sake of the designs.

Oftentimes, models begin their careers early, and are exposed to an adult world before the legal age. While discussing the provocative poses and nudity for particular shoots, Delevingne admits that she felt she couldn’t say no.

“It’s horrible and disgusting,” she said. “[We’re talking about] young girls. You start when you’re really young and you do, you get subjected to… not great stuff.”

At some point in our lives, we are all victims of self-consciousness. I freak out if I have a bad photo on Facebook. I can only imagine the humiliation and uncomfortable numbness of constantly being in front of a camera snapping away at your self-esteem until it is at an all-time low.

Though Delevingne will be the first to tell you that insecurities and sexual harassment felt more prominent for her in the fashion world, said she does get her fair share from the movie business as well. However, she refuses to let these instances slide going forward.

"I am very good at standing up for myself now, and for other people," she said. "If there is injustice I will flip out. If someone is crossing a line, they will know about it and so will everyone else. I am a lot harder than I was and I feel like all of that modeling, life, rejection, everything, was preparation for this, and now that I am doing this I am the happiest person in the whole world."

Those exposed to the glitz and glam of fashion are not immune to insecurities, and while we may think they look gorgeous, they may not be feeling oh so glamorous. They say a picture's worth a thousand words, but when it comes to fashion label's advertisements, there may be a different story behind the eyes of a model than we would like to assume.