Dark, mysterious and exotic: The Spanish feminine paradigm popularized by actresses and models in American fashion publications

This article is framed within studies on the role of fashion publications in the dissemination of certain models of femininity. During the 1950s and 1960s, when Spanish high fashion was embarking on a process of internationalization, industry magazines in the United States conveyed the concept of national identity through a specific female archetype. First, a terminological study of how Harper’s Bazaar and Vogue constructed a narrative around Spanish women based on a symbolic repertoire previously used to disseminate a specific imaginary of the Italian feminine paradigm. Comparing this with the transalpine ideal circulating in media across the pond, reports starring Lola Flores, Lucía Bosè and Naty Abascal, figures well known to the American public, were analysed. Finally, an attempt has been made to determine whether Spain managed to project a new and alternative female archetype.