Regional Aesthetics (part 3)

This is the final addition to my east coast modeling troupe regional aesthetic article.

Florida is home to some very interesting troupes in the United States. The state is a giant peninsula with a tropical climate and a cultural clash between Anglo-American values and the Latin American heritage of its many residents.  It’s a state where the beach, and the millions of dollars in tourism profits it brings annually affect the life of its inhabitants, influencing public policy, environmental regulation, cuisine, and most notably, fashion.  Indeed, of the regions of the east coast outside New York City, Miami is arguably the most important hub for retail.  It is fashion industry that has a heavy influence on the performance modeling style of the Florida troupes, which have become an anti-thesis to those in North Carolina and the D.C., Maryland, Virginia areas.
At A Glance:
Style:
-Very traditional modeling
-Simple turns or the 1970's tornado spin (think Mahogany, starring Diana Ross)
-Heavy use of photography

Fashion:
-Ready-to-wear
-Sponsored by boutiques and retailers
-Swim Wear and lingerie is not taboo (unlike North Carolina and DMV troupes). More southern and liberal, what a paradox!!!

Typical Show
-98% Runway
-Maybe a group routine...maybe...well, not really. If you do see one, it's gonna be a blue moon

In-Depth:
High fashion designers and world class modeling agencies are as entrenched in Florida as barnacles on a dolphin! With that said, performance modeling here is more straight forward and practical. Troupes in this state are similar to those in North Carolina in that they are usually attached to universities as student organizations.  Once again, the lack of efficient public transportation is a factor in this, as well as the fact that performance modeling in Florida is grown and sexy!

Members of the University of South Florida's chapter of FACES Modeling Troupe 

FACES models

Since swim wear is a LARGE part of Florida fashion, expect to see lots of bathing suits in its fashion shows. It’s not a far fetched thing. Figure in the availability of professional modeling agencies and strip clubs and it’s quite easy to use performance modeling as a platform to a higher, more lucrative form of performance and career in retail, advertising, photography, and etc. Therefore, performance modeling in Florida is more conservative, giving the audience a style that is palatable to HBCU audiences and industry execs, both of whom can respect the 70’s era modeling style that many if not most of the troupes emulate.
So who are these half-naked armies of flesh? Well there are some notable groups down there yonder. First and foremost is Epicurean Modeling Troupe from Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University (FAMU). Started in 1978, the troupe is one of the oldest surviving  performance modeling groups on the east coast.  According to the group’s MySpace page:

Epicurean! Fashion Experience was founded in 1978 on the campus of Florida A&M University. In 1975 Epicurean! was known as the Clorets which derived from the School of Clothing and Retail. At the end of each semester, students would present their final designs in a fashion show. A group of individuals decided to establish a group who had more than a passion for designing clothes. Three years later, Epicurean! was born. The word epicurean comes from the Greek philosopher Epicurus who believed that pleasure is tied closely to satisfying one's desires.

Wow, that’s some history and strong organizational identity right there! I hope all you troupes chartered in the past 5 years take note!

Now, Epicurean is not the only troupe to grace the campus of FAMU. The university is home to another modeling troupe, and perhaps the most encompassing, organized, and regionally dominant performance modeling group on the east coast ever take that Models Inc. and Aggies! That group is FACES, which has not one, not two, but seven chapters at different universities across Florida.  This group has turned college modeling out by creating fashion shows that are not only sponsored by local designers, but photography campaigns, model portfolios, commercials, and at one point a website that thang is dead ya’ll, somebody paid it for the benefit of their models! FACES is a modeling machine, so complex, that I’ll cover them in a different post, but for those of you who can’t wait that long I’ll provide links at the bottom for you to learn more about them.

Of course, there are other troupes in Florida.  xXtra Modeling Troupe was charted with the premise of being a group for plus size models on the campus of the University of Florida. Simply Delicious Fashions . iMAGES Modeling Troupe was charted in 1985 on the campus of Florida State University.  According to their Myspace page:

Images Modeling Troupe was created and chartered in the Fall of 1985 on the campus of Florida State University with the purpose of establishing an intermembership consisting of 12 individuals that had a love for fashion and modeling, and since then hundreds of young men and women have held membership with IMT and many of them have left with a better understanding and belief of themselves and their capabilities. IMT has always produced shows that were developed around concepts and themes. In its early stages, those concepts and themes were conveyed through a perceived style of modeling that was effective for the purpose of the organization at that time.

Yes, Florida has some dinosaur modeling organizations. However, one should expect these groups to flourish in an environment were urban fashion and swim wear are readily accepted as a part of everyday life. Where the ambiance of Disney World, Sea World, and Republican dominated socio-political environment creates a lulling inertia.  My friends shudder at the baggy clothes 1995-2005 gangsta-rap clothing seen in many Florida troupe shows (even up to 2009), but there’s a decade’s worth of African-American identity and experience that is enshrined in those fabrics. Yes, they are out of style, but like the vintage modeling techniques of many Florida performance modeling groups, they form a piece of the puzzle as to Generation X, Y, and Z’s identities. Besides…I kind of like how simple the Florida troupes get down. Their style just creates more variety in terms of the performance modeling art form.

Links:

• All About Modeling
• Additional Information
• FACES Modeling Troupe (Orlando Chapter)