Yay! French Elle's amazing no-makeup issue (and why American mags need to step it up)

The April issue of French Elle features eight female European celebrities--including Eva Herzigova, Monica Bellucci, Sophie Marceau, and Charlotte Rampling--all without makeup and, perhaps even more revealing, all entirely without Photoshopping or retouching of any kind. The mag's headline "Stars Sans Fards" translates to “without rouge/makeup,” but it's a French saying that also suggests a sense of  “openness.”

Judging from the images that have been leaked so far (the entire issue hits newsstands later this week), this title could not be more apt. Model Herzigova, 36, and actresses Marceau, 42, and Bellucci, 44, all look refreshingly natural, relaxed, and vulnerable in a way  American stars are seldom seen.

In fact, what might be most striking about French Elle's pictorial is how it actually appears to embrace and celebrate the organic beauty of these famous faces (even if the lighting is super, super flattering and the women are all unbelievably gorgeous to begin with). In the U.S., when you come across a "stars without makeup" story, there's always a GOTCHA! element, a message that says "Our gift to you: Derive pleasure from how ugly this person looks without cover-up for her zits!"

If you think about it, even our celebration of "natural beauty" is often far from natural. Consider the air-brushing scandal that surrounded last year's Dove ads, or the countless "normal" celebs who are heralded for their curves but then, when they're featured in a magazine, are digitally whittled down so they appear several sizes slimmer. We're a curvy country that can't handle looking at curvy people. It's all kind of sad.

And, honestly, French Elle's April '09 issue is not the first time our women's mags have been out-classed by the Europeans. Last year--in protest of the serious lack of diversity on catwalks, ads and in women's magazines--Italian Vogue published an all-black issue featuring models of color from around the world. It sold out in days.

So American magazine editors, I plead to you: It's time to step up your game. American readers would like to see some real, healthy women who actually look like themselves. Please stop with the whole Frankenstein thing: We know you attach your cover models' heads to skinnier bodies. We know you slim down their thighs and their noses and you lighten their skin. We know you smooth out all of the facial "imperfections" that make them look human. We're tired of fembots. We can handle the truth.
Seriously, the next time you're shooting Scarlett Johansson, Jennifer Lopez, Halle Berry, Aniston, SJP, Alba, or basically anyone we've seen you airbrush into a complete, unrecognizable freak; pause, take a deep breath, and ask yourself, "Would this person look more beautiful and relatable without all this fake garbage?"

We're guessing the answer will always be "Yes."

French Elle’s No-Makeup Issue