2012 SI Swimsuit

[frenchkiki]

story from the nytimes - we arent the only ones that are surprised by the cover...

Model Struts Path to Stardom Not on Runway, but on YouTube

By GUY TREBAY

There was a time, not long ago, when the surest path to modeling stardom was down the runway of a top designer’s show, when it would have been unthinkable to find among the industry’s top ranks a swimsuit girl whose main claims to fame were ad campaigns for Guess jeans and Beach Bunny Swimwear.

But that was before social media altered the paths to fame.

Unlike the many little-known beauties now on view at New York Fashion Week — women seldom identified by more than one name (Agata, Hanaa, Frida, Joan) — Kate Upton, just 19 and resembling a 1950s pinup, but with the legs of a W.N.B.A. point guard, has arrived on the scene as a largely self-created Internet phenomenon.

It is not just that she has a respectable Twitter following (170,000 people at last count), or a YouTube video with over 3 million viewers, or marketing potential perhaps best measured by her rocketing from obscurity to No. 2 on a list of the world’s 99 “top” women compiled by AskMen.com, an online magazine with 15 million readers. (Sofia Vergara, of the ABC sitcom “Modern Family,” is No. 1.)

Less than a year after Ms. Upton, curvaceous and rambunctious, posted a video of herself at a Los Angeles Clippers game doing the Dougie, a dance popularized in a hip-hop tune by Cali Swag District, she finds herself in one of the most coveted positions in the modeling business.

Joining an elite club of modeling powerhouses — brand names like Cheryl Tiegs, Tyra Banks and Heidi Klum — Ms. Upton was announced Monday night on David Letterman’s show as the latest cover girl for Sports Illustrated’s annual swimsuit issue, the circulation and advertising behemoth that has long been equally the dream book of adolescent males and the bane of feminists.

In modeling, as in movies (see: “Chronicle,” the film that hit No. 1 at the box office this month after relying on social media outlets like Twitter and YouTube for its marketing), music (the band Fun. and its inescapable viral hit “We Are Young”) and most other cultural endeavors, it is increasingly clear that there is no longer a single path to success.

“We all know that social media now creates its own reality,” said Wayne Sterling, the publisher of Models.com, an industry Web site. “If you become a YouTube star among teenagers, you have even more recognizability than a TV star,” he said. “Kate Upton is the perfect example of that.”

It was soon after the Dougie video went viral that a seasoned scout, David Cunningham, brought Ms. Upton to the attention of Ivan Bart of IMG Models, the company behind the multimillion-dollar careers of women like Gisele Bündchen, Ms. Klum and Kate Moss.

“When Kate first came in, everyone at the agency thought I was crazy,” Mr. Bart, the “superagent” who heads IMG Models, said of Ms. Upton. “She wasn’t ‘fashion’ enough.”

Mr. Bart signed her anyway. And soon, to the surprise of some in the industry, Ms. Upton was being sought out for editorial sittings with people like Carine Roitfeld, the French fashion eminence known for her prophetic eye, and by Katie Grand, the influential stylist and editor of the fashion-forward British magazine Love.

Wholesomely proportioned at 5 feet 11 inches with a 36-25-34 figure, Ms. Upton was a long way from the coolly robotic Eastern European beauty ideal that has dominated the catwalks for many seasons. “Kate is bigger than fashion,” Mr. Bart said. “She’s the Jayne Mansfield of the Internet.”

Though the catwalks of New York, Paris and Milan, traditionally a pathway to magazine covers and the lavish cosmetic and fragrance advertising campaigns that are the grail of every modeling hopeful, will continue to exert influence, it is increasingly difficult for the industry to ignore the world outside the Fashion Week tents, particularly the one that is virtual.

“It’s not just enough to cast such-and-such a girl that opened Prada or Vuitton or whatever,” said Trey Laird, the creative director of Laird & Partners, the advertising agency behind brands like Tommy Hilfiger, Juicy Couture and the Gap. “It’s a huge help if a girl already has a platform and followers, and Kate Upton is a great example of that.”

Those dubious about Ms. Upton’s crossover potential, or of any career driven toward the stony heart of fashion from the do-it-yourself fringes of the blogosphere, include Sophia Neophitou, editor of the English style bible 10 and a creative force behind the casting of the Victoria’s Secret shows.

“We would never use” Ms. Upton for a Victoria’s Secret show, Ms. Neophitou said by telephone last week from London. And, while Ms. Upton has, in fact, modeled on occasion for the company’s catalog, her look, said Ms. Neophitou, is “too obvious” to be featured in what has become the most widely viewed runway show in the world.

“She’s like a Page 3 girl,” Ms. Neophitou said, referring to the scantily clad voluptuous women featured in The Sun, a London tabloid. “She’s like a footballer’s wife, with the too-blond hair and that kind of face that anyone with enough money can go out and buy.”

And yet, Ms. Upton turns up as the hottest new face in the industry in a coming issue of V, a fashion magazine with a cult following among the cognoscenti.

“I wasn’t necessarily drawn to her because of her having been big online and having several million hits on YouTube,” said Stephen Gan, V’s editor in chief and creative director. “In fact, I first heard of her when we were having a party at the Boom Boom Room and Kate Moss’s agent called and said, ‘Can you put Kate Upton on your list?’ ”

Unfamiliar then with the young model, Mr. Gan searched Google and came upon the Dougie video, along with the welter of gossip items that connect Ms. Upton to celebrities like Kanye West and the New York Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez. Tabloid readiness aside, he saw in her something a less seasoned fashion eye might overlook.

“I come from a business where the perennial question is ‘Are you beautiful in a fashion sense or in a beauty pageant sense or beautiful-girl-next-door sense?’ ” Mr. Gan said. “And I feel like, why can’t we try to find something that’s a little bit different? If you’ve ever looked at pictures of Jean Harlow up close, she had the same curves as Kate Upton, the same silhouette, and she was the definition of beauty at the time.”

Sitting last week in the Manhattan offices of IMG Models, clad in tight jeans and Christian Louboutin stilettos and with her peroxided hair piled high, Ms. Upton called to mind the dumb blondes of an earlier era, women like Ms. Mansfield and Marilyn Monroe who, as we now know, were not dumb at all.

But unlike the passive beauties of the 1950s, Ms. Upton has a coolly appraising approach to her assets. She also has a big laugh, no shortage of confidence and the habit of cracking her knuckles like a tomboy bombshell.

“For a long time, fashion has been going to celebrities,” she said. “Celebrities are on the magazine covers, and nobody wanted models. But why not have a model celebrity? Why not a girl who comes with her own following? Social media brings a personality to models. That’s how consumers today decide what to buy.”

“I studied this,” added Ms. Upton, a Michigan native who was raised in Melbourne, Fla., and who began work at 15, spending her first few years toiling in the lucrative but unglamorous salt mines of catalog modeling.

What Ms. Upton learned was that before Ms. Bündchen grew Angel wings and became Mrs. Tom Brady and a business impresario overseeing a multimillion-dollar empire built on the licensing of everything from lingerie to shower shoes, she was just another runway girl from the first wave of then-new Brazilians, a woman routinely informed she would never make it big in high fashion because her figure was too curvy and her nose was too long.

“People told me I couldn’t be fashion, that I’m just an old-fashioned body girl, only good for swimwear,” Ms. Upton said. “But I knew that I could bring back the supermodel.”

“What can I say?” she added. “I’m relatable.”

TFS

U should read the comment about the cover & Kate on TFS

$1 prostitute is one of the nicest!

http://forums.thefashionspot.com/f78/sport...ton-168823.html

[Ophelia_Immortal]

Sadly..I am in agreement, with most of what people say. But I'd never say it so meanly lol

[Vanessa_gxox]

Adaora- gorgeous, such a cute face, love her smile and I love all the red against her skin colour.

Nina- Looks adorable and sexy at the same time, especially love the ones of her with the braids and paddle.

Cintia- Of course I knew they were gnna be gorgeous...love the ones in the grass.

Kate- Not the biggest fan of her by any means but I like some her shots- the cover one is rubbish.

Michelle- Very pretty girl but the shots are boring and standard.

Anne- she bores me , but like some.

Jessica- like some

Irina- LOVE, she looks great and so exotic and sexy

Bar- looking great once again

Chrissy- Not a fan but these photos are stunning actually, much better than last years!

Renn- Beautiful face...boring shots.

Pantanto- what a bombshell, some of these shots are just amazing.

Alyssa- Love this woman, stunning face, sexy body...she is a natural infront of the camera.

Izabel- One of my favourites, love the colours they put her in, gorgeous hair.

Ariel- Just beautiful,I am a fan.

Kirby- She looks like a Bratz doll, her face is so young and stuff....

Julie- ehhh

Gomes- gorgeous, love the one where she is running....very baywatch.

[superRDF]

what a joke. that lady saying Kate's look is too obvious for a VSFS. So apparently women who's curves/best parts are too big aren't right for VS as for tfs, some of their points are right but they are really rude about it <_< everyone has their own opinion though

[Prettyphile]

We would never use” Ms. Upton for a Victoria’s Secret show, Ms. Neophitou said by telephone last week from London. And, while Ms. Upton has, in fact, modeled on occasion for the company’s catalog, her look, said Ms. Neophitou, is “too obvious” to be featured in what has become the most widely viewed runway show in the world

. . . and now we know the people at VS are fucking retarded on a level not quite seen in a long time.

I thought the idea of VS was to SELL LINGERIE TO A GROUP OF "OBVIOUS PEOPLE". . . yanno the "obvious" person shopping in the malls, walking down the the street with their dog, hanging out in their suburban homes . . . those obvious people who are giving CBS it's views each year.

So Kate's "obvious" but Adriana isn't? Um... ok... whatever you say.

So in short VS likes woman who either looks like dudes, are high fashion worthy, just plain odd looking, skinny as can be and only have a figure when they're photoshopped into having one (go go VS bra that adds to cup sizes), annoying personalities and aren't "obvious" i.e relate-able to the AVERAGE JOE on the street . . . ok I get it . . .

^ VS clearly the foremost authority on what sexy is and what people want right?

[ngolf]

Yea, so in the 12 hours since the release of SI 2012, we have learned that both SI and VS are being run poorly.

Both need new people to turn them around :trout:

Poor casting and poor production have really brought them down. Their productions have been surpassed by others with much smaller budgets-- Esquire's Meinmyplace, Aerie Lingerie, La Perla, many photogs Vimeos....

[superRDF]

also this might address the issue of why we don't get so many big name models that do both SI and VS anymore, like Heidi and Tyra. You basically have someone who, while she isn't a VS spokeswoman she still is somewhat significant in the company, insulting SI's cover model and calling her a page 3 girl.

[happycanadian2]

OMG the photography SUCKS. this James Macari guy is TERRIBLE. the pictures have zero creativity to them. he's working with incredibly beautiful women with astonishing bodies and every pic looks like something out of a cheap swimsuit catalogue. where's the photography??! SO cheap and lazy it's unbelievable.

the positives -- Kate Upton is going to be the biggest star SI has had since Marisa Miller. i guarantee it. american men are obsessed with breasts, and clearly she's rocking some MAJOR CLEAVAGE. lol. and she's tanned and blonde and really beautiful. i've never seen her interviewed, but if she's clever and has a great personality, she can have a very big career.

Adaora is spectacular. what an incredible face and body. she's everything this magazine could dream of. i think the sky is the limit for this girl. i hope she's got great representation that try and get her into other formats, because as a black woman, she's got (sadly) a limited amount of available work, so the competition is fierce. but this girl is an absolute discovery! i am loving her.

[Liora Loyola]

Kate- it was a flop and way too much photoshop. Her cover was awful because her bikini bottom looks like it was about to slip off her ass. I only saw one picture I like and that's bad for a cover girl.

Nina- She tried too hard. I only saw one good photo.

Adaora- you guys may not favor a lot of black girls, this one is a knock- out. Amazing body (ass) and all. Best rookie hands down.

Cintia- I was disappointed. Her poses looked forced and she looked bored.

Michelle- they gave her the best locations. She's alright.

Anne V- her looks screams cover of the year, but no. I like the fact that she gave more than one pose. Overall good.

Jessica P- flop.

Irina- gorgeous woman, horrible pics of her and wrong locations for her photo shoot. I only thought 2 pics looked ok. Disappointing.

Bar- wonderful comeback! Probably the best of them all.

Chrissy- im shock. She actually did a great job this year.

Chrystal- go back to high fashion, girl!

Genevieve- After bar she comes second. Everything about her photos screams SI.

Alyssa- Beautiful woman, alright pics.

Izabel- same as last years nothing new to me. The pics are ok but forgettable.

Ariel- nothing about her stands out. NEXT!

kirby- Boring. They could had at least made her show some a** shots to be interesting.

Julie- meh.

Jessica G- She hot. I like some of her pics. Other are the same and didn't stand out.

Overall this issue isn't better than last years. Only Bar, Genevieve and Adaora stood out.

[phenobarbie]

o.0 I think I'm going to disagree with almost everything in the post above ... and gonna end there

[ILUVAdrianaLima]

does anyone else think the level of photoshop on some of this is a travesty? seems like an injustice to the models to me. not that I care for the barbie pictures, but when is SI gonna use some hq pictures instead of those tiny things?

Even though many have mentioned this over and over. I finally started to view all the pics and can't say i was expecting that level oh photo editing :yuckky: A real put off to what are gorgeous women already. I think KiKi is right, they might as well just use life size dolls if they want to complete the look. SI !!! these girls don't need modern day photo editing, they have modern day beauty !!!

[frenchkiki]

I love that cat so so much!

And VS.... Pfff... who really care what they think?

in what has become the most widely viewed runway show in the world

Hello! Is America THE WORLD?? Because the show is viewed only on America's TV.

Most of the rest of the world doesn't give a damn!

[Prettyphile]

btw Pheno is scanning the images with a and ruler and flat surface so they're straight as can be. If the images look off kilter then start looking at SI. The actual images in the magazine are printed crooked

[frenchkiki]

Sadly..I am in agreement, with most of what people say. But I'd never say it so meanly lol

u know people on TFS... they peepee Chanel perfume and they poopoo Vogue pages.

I also agree on few things but no need to attack Kate like this. It's just a swim magazine after all.

[Ophelia_Immortal]

Sadly..I am in agreement, with most of what people say. But I'd never say it so meanly lol

u know people on TFS... they peepee Chanel perfume and they poopoo Vogue pages.

I also agree on few things but no need to attack Kate like this. It's just a swim magazine after all.

I don't mean about Kate...I'm ambivalent towards her.

I was speaking about the photoshop and how crappy the mag has gotten lately. Nothing to do with the models really.

[MarVS]

THANK U SO MUCH FOR THIS Prettyphile and PhenoBarbie

[mbinebri]

Not that I'm saying Izabel should have got the cover... but that pic of her from behind in post #818 would have been a vastly better cover than the one SI chose.

[jcpsr]

Worst SI photos of Jessica Gomes.

She caved in and lost weight to please the fashionheads in SI

The photoshopping and airbrushing on all the models is terrible.

[siniko]

Kate would be great on GGW