Red-faced over Blackface: Vogue Thailand fails with model channeling Grace Jones in blackface

[webfact]

Red-faced over Blackface: Vogue Thailand fails with model channeling Grace Jones in blackface

By Coconuts Bangkok 

 

 

BANGKOK: -- Vogue Thailand’s latest Instagram photoshoot features a Thai model in blackface makeup meant to impersonate legendary Jamaican-American model, musician, and actress Grace Jones in an ill-advised bid to promote “selfie mode” on Huawei’s new much-hyped P10 phone.

 

Whether it’s a media stunt to sell a smartphone or the Thai edition of the prestigious fashion magazine is genuinely tone-deaf, its Tuesday Instagram post featuring famous Thai model Virahya “Gina” Patchokechai in cakey dark foundation was labeled an “epic fail” and drew many negative comments from its followers.

 

Vogue Thailand captioned the photo: “Gina Virahya uses Huawei P10’s selfie mode to capture herself in the look of Grace Jones, the 70’s and 80’s colored model and singer #HuaweixVogue #HuaweiP10.”

 

Full story: https://coconuts.co/bangkok/news/red-faced-blackface-vogue-thailand-fails-model-channeling-grace-jones-blackface/

 

-- © Copyright Coconuts Bangkok 2017-05-31

[Bangna Betty]

OMG Thais just don't get it. They clearly never notice what is happening around the world and acceptable. And this is a 'professional' publication. 

[Pdaz]

But it's perfectly acceptable to slather themselves in whitening products ?  Oh the irony !

Methinks black people ( or their snowflake, crybaby lobbyists ) are just a touch too sensitive..

There will never be equality if they wish to have separate rules.

[tifino]

 

 

their best excuse would be to say they were really imitating Iman [bowie]

 

 

but, imitation happens everywhere, and normal people would take it as type of flattery!

 

 

then again, others deny deny deny (Malaysia denied the following was a copy of another celebrity)

 

https://youtu.be/R2ND7YlKl5g

[seajae]

shows the total lack of intelligence of a lot of  thai people as many see nothing wrong with this but if anyone causes them to lose face all hell breaks loose, they simply have very juvenile minds. When 20 plus  year olds still play with mickey mouse dolls and stickers it is easy to see they lack maturity and reasoned thinking

[Bluespunk]

1 hour ago, webfact said:

Vogue Thailand’s latest Instagram photoshoot features a Thai model in blackface makeup meant to impersonate legendary Jamaican-American model, musician, and actress Grace Jones

Morons.

[Prbkk]

Grace Jones was quite capable of looking ridiculous by herself, as herself; no need for gratuitous assistance from a Thai impersonator ( who in any case looks like a chocolate fairy more than anything.)

[stanleycoin]

Oh dear oh dear.

They just love digging a hole for themselves

Amazing Thailand

[tifino]

 

The reality is - Lost Royalties

[canuckamuck]

What? Grace Jones was black?

 

[Prbkk]

5 minutes ago, stanleycoin said:

Oh dear oh dear.

They just love digging a hole for themselves

Amazing Thailand

She'll get the gig promoting Darlie toothpaste

[JHolmesJr]

did bingo session get cancelled today…lots of grumpies around.

 

no foul..play on.

[tifino]

 

Gracie Jones, and Iman are both old enough to remember Darkie toothpaste

 

 

(just brushing up on my history - and that was 1981)

[canuckamuck]

OK I think I get it, It is acceptable to imitate someone, dress like someone, do a voice impersonation, but don't ever ever ever simulate their skin color. 

PC world gone nuts, tying itself in knots. 

[roo860]

shows the total lack of intelligence of a lot of  thai people as many see nothing wrong with this but if anyone causes them to lose face all hell breaks loose, they simply have very juvenile minds. When 20 plus  year olds still play with mickey mouse dolls and stickers it is easy to see they lack maturity and reasoned thinking

Yes you're quite right about the dolls and sticker thing, some of these so called male celebrities have teddy bears etc in their bedrooms.


Sent from my SM-G920F using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

[mtls2005]

They never learn.  On the plus side, no Nazi attire.

 

The charcoal donut fiasco was just 4 years ago.

 

 

[Bluespunk]

19 minutes ago, JHolmesJr said:

did bingo session get cancelled today…lots of grumpies around.

 

no foul..play on.

Nope.

[Bluespunk]

9 minutes ago, canuckamuck said:

OK I think I get it, It is acceptable to imitate someone, dress like someone, do a voice impersonation, but don't ever ever ever simulate their skin color. 

PC world gone nuts, tying itself in knots. 

Nothing to do with PC.

 

The whole ''blackface'' thing is racist to the core.

 

Not always intentionally and I doubt it was in this case.

 

However the history behind it should be enough for any company realise that it is not a road to go down.

 

I'm astonished that in this case it was vogue...

Edited May 31, 2017 by Bluespunk

[Chou Anou]

8 minutes ago, canuckamuck said:

OK I think I get it, It is acceptable to imitate someone, dress like someone, do a voice impersonation, but don't ever ever ever simulate their skin color. 

PC world gone nuts, tying itself in knots. 

 

[canuckamuck]

45 minutes ago, Bluespunk said:

Nothing to do with PC.

 

The whole ''blackface'' thing is racist to the core.

 

Not always intentionally and I doubt it was in this case.

 

However the history behind it should be enough for any company realise that it is not a road to go down.

 

I'm astonished that in this case it was vogue...

How exactly do you do a photo session imitating Grace Jones with a light skinned model if you can't acknowledge that one of her iconic features was her dark skin tone. You know if this was an ad where the model had put on white face and a geisha outfit, no one would have blinked.

Just because blackface was used in insensitive ways 70 years ago, it doesn't make this photo shoot insensitive now. It was an homage to Grace Jones.

I think the PC crowd has made a sacred cow out of too many things that are just part of real life.

 

The outrage should be that the makeup was horribly applied, and they got the color wrong anyway.

[tifino]

 

more reason for it just being about the lost royalties

[ddavidovsky]

I see that a psychological analysis of this issue is not allowed. Presumably too close to the bone.

Pointless thread then.

[Bluespunk]

11 minutes ago, canuckamuck said:

How exactly do you do a photo session imitating Grace Jones with a light skinned model if you can't acknowledge that one of her iconic features was her dark skin tone. You know if this was an ad where the model had put on white face and a geisha outfit, no one would have blinked.

Just because blackface was used in insensitive ways 70 years ago, it doesn't make this photo shoot insensitive now. It was an homage to Grace Jones.

I think the PC crowd has made a sacred cow out of too many things that are just part of real life.

 

The outrage should be that the makeup was horribly applied, and they got the color wrong anyway.

Cannot agree.

 

If a company wants a model that has the skin tone of grace Jones, then find one.

 

If a company wants to pay homage to Grace Jones, then do so. Skin tone need not be a factor. Her sense of style/dress/hair/attitude can all be mimicked without the whole 'blackface'' thing.

 

I would condemn equally any racist portrayal of Caucasian people as in that terrible, prejudice riddled movie about two detectives that came out a few years ago did. [will not even bother to recall it's name]

 

''Blackface'' is rooted in prejudice and bigotry and any attempt to revive/employ it as a marketing strategy is paying homage to that hate.

 

It's not PC to recognise this.

Edited May 31, 2017 by Bluespunk

[canuckamuck]

19 minutes ago, Bluespunk said:

Cannot agree.

 

If a company wants a model that has the skin tone of grace Jones, then find one.

 

If a company wants to pay homage to Grace Jones, then do so. Skin tone need not be a factor. Her sense of style/dress/hair/attitude can all be mimicked without the whole 'blackface'' thing.

 

I would condemn equally any racist portrayal of Caucasian people as in that terrible, prejudice riddled movie about two detectives that came out a few years ago did. [will not even bother to recall it's name]

 

''Blackface'' is rooted in prejudice and bigotry and any attempt to revive/employ it as a marketing strategy is paying homage to that hate.

 

It's not PC to recognise this.

It's reverse racism and you are propping it up with your contrived notions of what can and can not be a subject of artistic interpretation.

Grace Jones, as I remember her from the 80's era, was wildly exotic with her athletic muscular build, androgynous looks, and her rich dark skin. Black is beautiful baby, don't be so embarrassed by it  There is no point in imitating her without addressing the skin tone. You might as well have a blonde Cher, or a fat Twiggy.

[PremiumLane]

3 hours ago, Pdaz said:

But it's perfectly acceptable to slather themselves in whitening products ?  Oh the irony !

Methinks black people ( or their snowflake, crybaby lobbyists ) are just a touch too sensitive..

There will never be equality if they wish to have separate rules.

that makes zero sense

[Machiavelli]

1 hour ago, mtls2005 said:

They never learn.  On the plus side, no Nazi attire.

 

The charcoal donut fiasco was just 4 years ago.

 

 

How is this offensive?

[Bluespunk]

23 minutes ago, canuckamuck said:

It's reverse racism and you are propping it up with your contrived notions of what can and can not be a subject of artistic interpretation.

Grace Jones, as I remember her from the 80's era, was wildly exotic with her athletic muscular build, androgynous looks, and her rich dark skin. Black is beautiful baby, don't be so embarrassed by it  There is no point in imitating her without addressing the skin tone. You might as well have a blonde Cher, or a fat Twiggy.

What on earth are you on about with 'reverse racism'?

 

''Blackface'' is rooted in hate and as such should not be seen as being harmless.

 

It carries all the baggage of prejudice, bigotry and racism that spawned it in the first place.

 

To pay homage to it, in any form, pays homage to the hate that is it's history.

[Pdaz]

7 minutes ago, PremiumLane said:

that makes zero sense

I shall explain in simpler terms.

 

If making a yellow person black with make-up is offensive.

Then shouldn't making a yellow person white with make-up be equally offensive ?

 

Oh no, white people don't get offended as easily as black people..

 

Edited May 31, 2017 by Pdaz

[PremiumLane]

5 minutes ago, Pdaz said:

I shall explain in simpler terms.

 

If making a yellow person black with make-up is offensive.

Then shouldn't making a yellow person white with make-up be equally offensive ?

 

Oh no, white people don't get offended as easily as black people..

 

but you got offended lol

[yogi100]

8 minutes ago, Bluespunk said:

What on earth are you on about with 'reverse racism'?

 

''Blackface'' is rooted in hate and as such should not be seen as being harmless.

 

It carries all the baggage of prejudice, bigotry and racism that spawned it in the first place.

 

To pay homage to it, in any form, pays homage to the hate that is it's history.

 

Precisely what prejudice, bigotry and racism did it actually spawn?