Welcome to Beauty BCE, Highsnobiety’s series unpacking iconic moments in beauty history. Writer and makeup fanatic Faye Odesser revisits Betsey Johnson’s Fall/Winter 1998 show, where Sudanese model Alek Wek threw off her blonde wig in an act some interpreted as a protest against the racism and texturism that continues to plague the fashion industry.
When models disrupt a runway show, they reject an essential part of their job: to exist only as conduit between the designer and their audience. The model is an embodiment of a designer’s vision — and a designer’s vision is inextricable from the historical moment they design for, with all its attendant socio-political implications.
So when a model disrupts a show in order to take control of her image, like Alek Wek did at Betsey Johnson’s Fall/Winter 1998 extravaganza, it all but guarantees a media frenzy, underscoring and challenging deeply entrenched beauty standards.
Wek is a rare talent: Known for her statuesque figure, short-cropped afro, and blinding smile, the Sundanese-British powerhouse was scouted at age 18 and built a career that’s lasted nearly two decades. Now, Wek is widely regarded as a fashion icon — but it wasn’t easy contending with the specific brand of racism endemic to the mid-90’s fashion industry. Black models and models of color were gaining traction, yet too often were subjected to mistreatment, fetishization, and a general ignorance of their very presence. So even as Wek’s career developed, she was regarded as inherently different, cast as a controversial symbol, antithetical to beauty standards of the larger culture.
A VH1 segment on Wek’s modeling debut alludes to the industry’s apprehension as André Leon Talley notes, "When this fabulous Black girl from Sudan walked out, people didn't even look at her. She was too much of a threat … people are afraid of color." "In the same segment, the camera cuts to Wek, whose outlook is positive, remarking on the spectrum of identities represented by the models at the show. Cut back to Talley who counters by saying that Wek is being naïve: "The world is saying it’s multicultural and global, but it’s not ready for that look on a broad scale.”
Despite the prejudice plaguing the industry, Wek proved she was there to stay — and that she wasn’t all that naïve about the fashion industry, nor willing to stand for it. At Betsey Johnson’s FW98 show, Wek was cast alongside industry heavyweights including Adriana Lima, Esther Canadas, and Naomi Campbell. Outfitted with blonde, unkempt wigs, vampy lipstick, and dramatic eyeliner, models looked like glamorous, messy party girls — the playful troublemaker of the Betsey Johnson brand. On her final strut down the runway, Wek stopped, removed her sunglasses to look the audience in the eye, and threw off her wig.
In one bold but simple gesture, she broke the unspoken rule of modeling — to remain on display behind the clothes — to assert her individuality. Many viewed the moment as a reclamation of self in a racist, texturist, and colorist industry.
Despite what many still insist, fashion does not exist outside larger cultural ideals. It’s well-documented that Black models’ hair has always been subject to critique and mistreatment. When they’re not left to handle their own hair and makeup behind-the-scenes, Black models are often paired with inexperienced stylists who alter their natural texture to better resemble white hair. As such, Black models are made to feel that they don’t belong in the industry in their natural state, and often finish out a runway season sustaining damage to their curls and coils.
Fashion falls short in both knowledge and sensitivity when it comes to Black hair, a gap that ultimately narrows the scope of representation on the runway, in magazines, and in advertising. When Wek removed her straight, blonde wig to reveal her natural hair on the runway, it was as if she was declaring: I’m beautiful, just as I am.
“That wig was not just about me taking it off to make a scene,” Wek said while reflecting on the moment in 2015. “It was a time that I was just starting in fashion, to work. And the one thing that I told my agents was, ‘If you are going to represent me, I’m not going to be a gimmick and be in for a couple of seasons. You’re going to take it all or leave it.’”
Today, Wek’s defiant spirit still resonates. Her wig toss is lauded across social media as an iconic, career-defining moment. Two decades later, fashion and beauty have made some strides towards wider representation and inclusion. But for many, the image of her casting aside the blond wig still hits home, serving as a reminder of the progress yet to be made.
