Iman “Not a Great Beauty” Either, Especially Without Her Make-Up

The real Iman. No comment, except that’s not her hair either; she bought it (Courtesy: Bossip)

Remember that incident two years ago, when the supermodel Iman had to volunteer remarks during an interview about what she thought about Michelle Obama, the new First Lady of the United States, who then as now was being lauded for her taste and fashion sense? I mean, it came out of nowhere even for the interviewer, who apparently wasn’t prepared to ask her anything along those lines.

“Mrs. Obama is not a great beauty, ” Iman says, startling [the author] a bit. “But she is so interesting looking and so bright. That will always take you farther. When you are a great beauty, it’s always downhill for you. If you’re someone like Mrs. Obama, you just get better with age.”

You’ve got to appreciate the crassness and condescension of the woman. Again, it was how she said it.  Married to David Bowie, rich and admired, she had to put her paltry two cents in.  Well, karma can be a bitch, too. Iman was recently photographed without her make-up; that is, without her face on. I’m sure she wore no make-up to melt into the New York crowds as many celebrities usually do so as not to be recognized. That’s a mask as well.

This picture of Iman is pretty different from the face we’ve been presented with throughout the years. There are times that The National Enquirer, cruel as it can be, shows us what exactly is behind the mask of beauty that is put forth for our pleasure, and the results can be pretty shocking in certain cases. This photo, while not from The Enquirer, unnerved me as well for a few moments, but I realized that without her make-up, Iman was no better or no worse than black women my age, and at their best. On second look, Iman certainly has more access to treatments and procedures because of her wealth, but I have no idea whether or how much she avails herself of them.

In this photo, Iman also looks as if she is ill, or at the very least, very uncomfortable that she has been trailed, exposed and caught off guard.  There are times when ambush photography is something I would not wish on anyone.

At any rate, I ask again as I did before, who was Iman to talk about Michelle Obama’s looks?  Or to presume herself an authority on such a subject?  Sometimes it pays not to say anything about anyone, because it will boomerang on you if it was unwarranted. I think that in this case, it did and it was.

~ by blksista on March 8, 2011.