Diversity on the runways was no coincidence, but a revolution.
Do you know who the Mother of Industry was that changed everything? Discover her story with us.
Don’t miss the documentary Invisible Beauty, available in the Moritz Feed Doc catalog on CaixaForum+, and discover how Bethann Hardison has changed the rules of fashion forever.
Supermodel, activist and benchmark
Bethann Hardison is one of the most influential and visionary figures in the history of contemporary fashion. Born in Brooklyn in the autumn of 1942, she grew up in an environment that reinforced a strong and independent character. This determination was the driving force that catapulted her, shortly after, into the heart of fashion: Manhattan.
Model, activist, and an undeniable benchmark of leadership, Hardison leveraged her status to act as a megaphone for an urgent political struggle, demanding real and dignified representation for the Black community.
Her legacy is having turned the runway into a battleground for civil rights and a space for diversity.
Battle of Versailles: From the runway to making history
In an overwhelmingly white industry, Hardison immediately stood out with a performative style, a defiant attitude, and a magnetic presence. She quickly became the muse of major designers such as Willi Smith, Stephen Burrows, and Issey Miyake, challenging the canonical Eurocentric beauty standards of the era. This path toward disruption reached its peak in 1973 with the historic Battle of Versailles, the showdown between traditional French haute couture and American modernity. There, Hardison and nine other Black models captivated the Parisian audience. A chapter that the documentary Invisible Beauty revisits to recall how her figure rewrote the rules of the game.
Bethann Management and the creation of icons
Beyond her success on the runway, Hardison—seeing how Black models were once again being sidelined during the 1980s—decided to take control and found Bethann Management in 1984. She thus became one of the first Black women to head a supermodel agency. From this position, she confronted tokenism, proving that Black beauty was not a passing trend, but an indispensable reality for the fashion industry. As an agent and mentor, she catapulted the career of Tyson Beckford (securing a historic contract with Ralph Lauren), and guided the trajectories of icons like Iman and Naomi Campbell. For all of them, Hardison was not merely a representative, but a mother figure, earning herself the nickname Mother of Industry. Through the testimony of figures like Zendaya in the documentary Invisible Beauty, it is shown how the real revolution consisted of opening doors and teaching new generations to negotiate and stand up for their own worth.
An uninterrupted fight against structural racism
“Diversity is not a trend; it is a necessity.” – Bethann Hardison
This determination led her to take her activism a step further. In 1988, she founded the Black Fashion Coalition to combat structural racism in the sector, a fight she kept alive for decades. One of the most talked-about moments came in 2013, when she sent a letter to the major fashion capitals—New York, London, Milan, and Paris—directly pointing out brands that continued to ignore diversity. It is this determination that Invisible Beauty captures. Beyond being a tribute to a living legend, the documentary serves as a reminder that the fight for racial representation is never fully won, and that embracing diversity is not a mere superficial trend.
