Bankok-based modeling agency, Apple Model Management, is expanding to the American fashion market, and they are the first modeling agency to have a division devoted exclusively to transgender models.
They recently opened their first Los Angeles location, and currently have six trans women on their roster. From their website:
The term Transgender is defined as of, relating to, or being a person who identifies with or expresses a gender identity that differs from the one which corresponds to the person’s sex at birth.
In the past years Transgender people have become more and more accepted in many areas of music, entertainment, fashion and commercial advertising due to names such as Aderet, Alexandra Billings, Lavern Cox, Isis King, Lea T. and Andrej Pejic just to name a few.
Thailand has been hosting the famous ‘Miss International Queen’ transgender competition for contestants from all over the world for the past 10 years and has been known in its openness to the gay and transgender community.
As a result, Apple Model Management has opened the first of its kind, full transgender model division, with the goal of giving transgender models an international stage to work worldwide and to globally represent Thailand and South East Asia.
Now, I have problems with the fashion industry in general (the way it too often perpetuates an unrealistic beauty standard that is disproportionately harmful to women, for starters). However, it is really nice to see a modeling agency actively nurturing trans models. Regardless of how one might feel about the industry, it’s a sign of progress when any industry realizes a disparity in representation and makes an attempt to level the playing field. Now, where are my trans male models at?
(via Jezebel; Image of Andrej Pejic via Christopher Macsurak on Flickr)
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