BHS Day 10: Donyale Luna

Hi! For our second Art & Fashion Spotlight I'm focusing on the other half of the spotlight. My Art half of the category never has any issue being filled; I actually have a difficult time filtering through all the people I'd like to feature. The Fashion half, however, is always a bit of pain in the bum. As I've said a few times before in Spotlights past, Black fashion designers and fashion professionals in general have a documented history (ironically) of being excluded from fashion history. As far as modeling fashion was concerned, I imagine it was simply exclusion; the truth is that many White designers didn't want a Black girl on their runways, and many prospective models weren't able to break into the industry. The latter is still an issue today. Unfortunately, today's entrant has the distinction of being lost to history due to an untimely death and as a result, isn't often discussed when the conversation of trailblazing models comes up. She was, though, and that's why I'm featuring her. Unlike many of my entrants, past and present, today's entrant wasn't trying to become the face and voice of a people or a movement. She was just trying to be herself and I can appreciate that, even as the decision not to be those things was probably controversial in-community at the time. Let's get to it!

Source

Name: Peggy Ann 'Donyale Luna' Freeman, 1945-1979

Profession: Supermodel

Why is the Spotlight on her today? For her mostly unsung achievements in the modeling industry and her progressive thinking at a time she was expected to fit in a box

Notables:

--Was the first Black woman (although she self-identified as 'mulatta') to grace any edition of Vogue magazine when she made the cover of British Vogue

--Was the first Black woman to be featured on the cover of Harper's Bazaar in an illustration following a last-minute cover change decision

--Was so successful in Europe that Time magazine named 1966 "The Luna Year," referring to her as 'unquestionably the hottest model in Europe at the moment'

--Considered to be the first Black supermodel for her prominence in the '60s, a title often erroneously given to supermodels who came after her

--Renamed herself 'Donyale Luna' as a teen

--Was discovered by famed photographer David McCabe, who immediately offered her work if she moved to New York

--Signed a one-year contract with Richard Avedon of Harper's Bazaar, and the first feature was a six-page spread in the magazine, the first of its kind for a Black model

--Faced racism throughout her career in America despite her popularity, including the end of her contract with Avedon & Harper's Bazaar following Avedon's forbiddance to shoot Luna for publication purposes, causing other publications and photographers to pull out of shooting her

--Famously played up her racially ambiguous look and constantly shied away from commenting on the political climate during the Civil Rights Movement, purposely rejecting the notion that she was creating opportunities for Blacks or had any foothold in the movement, causing a bit of controversy with the Black community

--Moved to London following her unofficial blackballing in American modeling, where her career hit new heights as her race and look were embraced 

--Was called "a reincarnation of Nefertiti" by Salvador Dali, who declared her one of his muses and collaborated with her on a shoot at his home

--Posed for Playboy in 1975

--Was featured by 11 different photographers in a collaborative shoot, where each photographer displayed their individual visions of her

--Starred in three Andy Warhol-produced films, one of them a self-titled film starring her as Snow White

--Had the starring role in the Italian film Salome, where she met and fell in love with her husband, who later photographed her Playboy shoot

--Modelled for the likes of Paco Rabanne, Yves St. Laurent, and Valentino while in Paris, where she became a modern Josephine Baker in terms of her star quality

Further reading and resources:

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5

Quote of the Day:

"The civil-rights movement has my greatest support, but I don't want to get involved racially. If it [her success] brings about more jobs for Mexicans, Chinese, Indians, Negroes - groovy. It could be good, it could be bad. I couldn't care less."

-Donyale Luna

Today's organization: UndocuBlack Network

What does this organization provide? Support, education and resources for undocumented Black people fighting to receive full immigrant rights in America. The network provides undocuBlack people with tools and training, creating alliances that can help change policies affecting undocumented people, and keeping the community connected. The major goal is to create a sustainable network that advocates for immigrant rights and justice for undocuBlacks living in America. 

Donate | Toolkit 

See you tomorrow!