Karl Lagerfield thinks that the average woman is fat–and he has no qualms about saying so exactly. The creative mind behind fashion powerhouse Chanel, Lagerfield recently slammed Brigette (a German women’s magazine) for using “ordinary, realistic” models in their fashion photo spreads:

“These are fat mummies sitting with their bags of crisps in front of the television, saying that thin models are ugly.”

He went on to say that the main focus of haute couture was with “dreams” and that “no one want sto see round women”.

What, exactly, does Lagerfield mean by “round women”? Apparently, anyone who is not a size zero model. True, most high-end clothing is designed for a small frame, and certainly, these lofty ideals of how a woman should look mesh well with the often outrageous ideals of the fashion world. But does that mean that every woman who is not a size zero is automatically a “fat mummy”? Most women (and many men, to boot) would surely beg to differ! There are plenty of healthy, beautiful women, many with successful, high-profile careers, who are neither bone-thin nor chip-noshing couch potatoes. And what of screen sirens like Monica Bellucci and Scarlett Johansson? Are they, too, fat mummies?

Lagerfield’s comments raise serious questions about how we view the female body. These extreme expectations of thinness and perfection have driven countless women (including many teen girls) to develop eating disorders–there have even been multiple cases of models dying of anorexia. Why, then, does this negative attitude towards a “normal” shape continue to persist?

Why are we basing our ideals of beauty on the words of a select few designers? It’s high time for women to embrace a more positive attitude towards their bodies–if not for their own sakes, then for the sake of their daughters, sisters, and friends, who surely need the encouragement to develop a healthy self-image.

Read more about this story on Twirlit, and learn why supermodel Filippa Hamilton was fired from her gig with Ralph Lauren.

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