In its 105th issue, French magazine “Stylist” dedicated 4 full pages to grandmas.

Well, not exactly the kind of grandmas many might think of at first thought, ie baking cake for her grand-children and taking part in crazy bingo nights with her old pals. Nope, that’s not what we’re talking ‘bout. Here, we’re talking bitchy, gangsta grand-mothers.

The article offers a little overview of the badass old ladies that have been making headlines recently: Baddie Winkle (Instagram’s most famous grandma, whose bio is no less than “Stealing your man since 1928”), Violet Crawley in Downtown Abbey, Jacquie Murdock (who became the face of Lanvin’s campaign as she was 82), Lucienne Moreau (a bold grandma who got famous for her interviews on french TV show Le Petit Journal) …Yup, seems like those stylish old ladies are taking the world by storm. The article takes a look at some of the reasons why those grandmas became such gangsta icons.

Baddie Winkle, Instagram’s « coolest gran »

Old girls just wanna have fun!?

Those old ladies act and criticize whoever/whatever they want with seeming impunity. And that is quite fascinating, isn’t it ? Who hasn’t dreamt of breaking social norms by saying out loud what they’re thinking ? The magazine quotes Rosie White, author of the essay “Funny Old Girls”, who states that in pop culture, ageing gives women an oppportunity to act in an inappropriate way without being blamed for it. Those new “models” may then provide us with a new and liberating vision of aging. But as Rosie White puts it, isn’t there also a risk of perpetuating “cultural stereotypes regarding age and femininity as ‘inappropriate’”?

At the forefront of gender equality: I am a woman AND I am old AND I am grumpy.

Yup, bold and sulking old men are already quite common in our cultural representations. Think of Jean Gabin, Robert De Niro,… But what about women? In their case, such a behavior is too often described as “hysteria” (and this is the case for young women too…). So those grumpy oldmas, they’re at the forefront of the battle for “bad-mood equality”. They are the one who can afford to break the expectations the society holds for women. Don’t forget THEY were the one fighting for women’s sexual liberation. Far from being only muses for the fashion industry, what if grans were also muses for freedom?

Lucienne Moreau, a bold interviewer on French TV

So, what if grandmas were more rebelious than you are?

In the article, French sociologist Serge Guérin underlines: “It’s funny to note that nowadays, for brands, elderly are the ones who embody rebellion”. Yes, “old people” have changed. It seems obvious that youngsters have changed since 50 years, right? Why wouldn’t it be just the same with elderly? The journalist underlines that nowadays, THEY are the one who are much involved in associations. So no, getting older doesn’t mean you HAVE TO become reactionary (and to like bridge and knitting. And by the way knitting is getting trendy too. Anyway.)

In a nutshell, this article offers an interesting analysis of the rise of a new face in pop culture, the “unworthy grandmother”. We can praise the fact that ageing women are getting more visible in the media, and that the ladies quoted above offer a new model, far from the boring clichés. But… what if grannies didn’t have to be THAT badass to appear in magazines for a topic that is not related to alzheimer/loneliness/and-so-on? Wouldn’t it be good news? Well, the “gangsta grandma” trend might just be the first “shiny” step towards a fairer representation of elderly in media.

Speak up:

What do you think about those mediatic badass grandmothers?

We’ll probably tell you more about some of those stylish ladies soon, so be posted !

Don’t want to miss our updates? Follow us on Facebook / Twitter / Instagram