LINDSEY WIXSON AT MARILYN IS A SPECIAL THING

Miss Wixson profiling at her agency this morning

Beauty is a convention and convention is really boring to stare at all the time. Last season I was deeply frustrated because of an inability to book Miss Wixson in New York, a market that is doomed to be behind the curve primarily because it is clogged with a lot of people who pay lip service to the idea of creativity without truly investigating the value of creativity. What I thought was great about Lindsey Wixson was she brought an energy to a room and therefore to a catwalk that challenged the convention of beauty in an interesting way. That is to say, used in the right way, she could change your eye in a picture. That opportunity was exciting. This morning I finally got to work with Miss Wixson for a Spur sitting. As I stood across Lindsey and made eye contact with her I was really unnerved as to how ...resolved... this girl was at 15. She decided she would try to be a model at 12. She faced a lot of rejection but kept going and kept trying. In the meanwhile she went to art school deeply inspired by her older sister who was an artist as well. She told me that what she loved most about her Prada/Miu Miu experience was seeing the passion and creativity exhibited at the house concerning every single detail of what they do. Lindsey Wixson spoke with warmth and excitement and genuine fascination about the business she was in. She loved her new Phi boots and couldn't stop catwalking in them. The rumor is Miu-Miu is set to release as many as 8 images in an ad run where Lindsey's name is already prominently credited on the ad. In retrospect I realize now that in many ways this girl was meant for Prada/Miu Miu and no-one else. Only that house with its rigor and precision and tradition of questioning convention (even as it reiterated the highest of haute bourgeoise values) was supposed to conscript a Lindsey Wixson. Not everyone has the courage to lay bare the myth of what the "right girl" is or isn't. If she never works another day in her life for another client I think it is brilliant that a model who brought more than banal beauty to the sitting was showcased for a premium brand. At the end of the day it all vagary of taste but the one thing I do believe is an interesting human being with a driving intelligence and a powerful life force has as much value as that next porcelain doll who meets your expected convention of "beautiful".