When Masha Tyelna made her runway debut this spring we thought that she looked like E.T. in heels – and maybe with good reason.
Masha is just the most extreme example of a trend that’s been very present in castings for a while now:
Models with big wide eyes, small jaws, and large foreheads are always booking.
See: Gemma, Lily Donaldson, Vlada, Sasha, and Tanya D.
Their look has been called “alien babydoll,” and they do look a little like a Mattel best-seller.
So why do we think they’re so gorgeous?
Evolutionary biologist Stephen Jay Gould argued that humans evolved from chimpanzees who retained juvenile characteristics (like less hair, prominent foreheads, small jaws, and flat faces) into adulthood. This phenomenon is called neoteny, but maybe it should just be called “the fall runway.”
Other scientists, like Desmond Morris, have discussed how neotenic characteristics are considered extremely attractive in women; particularly hairlessness (hello Brazilians!) and large eyes (babies have larger eyes in relation to their faces than adults do, so we grown-ups have to use Diorshow mascara).
In that light, the current crop of models seems to represent a really extreme example of broader trends in human evolution. They so typify what humans look like that they start to look exceptional.
Do the alien babydolls look like the most beautiful humans to you? Or do you prefer a look that’s a little less “highly evolved”?
–ANNA FIELDING GRIGGS