Supermodels Gigi and Bella Hadid debuted bold new looks Monday, storming a New York runway with bleached eyebrows, short bangs and – what appeared to be – half-shaved heads.
But the sisters’ dramatic transformation was soon revealed to be the work of prosthetics artists, who had altered their appearance with the help of bald caps, wigs and makeup.
The futuristic styling was part of Marc Jacobs’ Fall 2022 show, which saw the designer’s eponymous brand unveil over 40 new looks at the New York Public Library, a Beaux-Arts style building on Fifth Avenue. Gigi modeled an enormous pink sweater and gray skirt, while Bella was dressed in a black vinyl dress with opera gloves.
Elsewhere in the presentation, models wore brightly colored, monochromatic garments that spanned outsized knitwear, voluminous ruffled gowns and dramatic platform boots. The Hadids were among several models walking the runway in dramatic hairstyles, with others seen sporting sharp bobs and space-age bangs.
On Instagram, Bella posted various backstage photos and a timelapse video showing makeup and prosthetic artists creating her look.
Online, the images sparked mixed reactions – and concern from some social media users believing the model had shaved her head for real. But fashion photographer Elizaveta Porodina replied to Bella’s post saying she looked “absolutely angelic,” while the activist and journalist Noor Tagouri commented: “The transformation is amazing.”
The eye-catching styling was overseen by Marc Jacobs’ makeup artist Diane Kendal and hairstylist Duffy. One of the special effects artists responsible for the Hadids’ looks, Noël Jacoboni, took to Instagram to say that working on the show had been “surreal.”
“Today was the perfect marriage of my ability to do a bald cap as well as work for one of my favorite designers with some of the top models in the industry,” she posted.
Jacobs’ latest spectacle, which was livestreamed on LED screens in New York’s Times Square, comes a year after he last staged a runway show in the same venue.
The American designer’s cryptic show notes declared that “creativity is essential living” before ending on a quote from the philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche: “We have art in order not to die of the truth.”