Iskra Lawrence is not your typical model. She’s too curvy to be in the Kendall Jenner model category and not curvy enough to fit in with the plus size models, so she made her own category. It’s neither plus size nor high fashion. It’s simply her: a normal girl with a normal body that’s curved in some places and not in others. She sat down with StyleLikeU to talk about her insecurities, breaking down barriers in the modeling industry, and how she finally learned to accept herself — all while getting naked.
Her interview is honest and awe-inspiring. She discusses her attempts to break into the modeling world at an early age and being told time and time again that she needed to slim down, especially in her hips and legs. She tried every diet under the sun, but nothing was giving her the results she wanted. Her body wasn’t made to be smaller in those areas, she later realized. But back then, her insecurities were starting to take over.
“I remember Googling ‘Is there an operation where you can cut your calf muscle?'” she says.
She couldn’t understand why she physically couldn’t look like the models in the magazines she saw that she wanted to be. She became obsessed with how she looked, dressing sexy to try and prove she was confident in her body when in reality she was hating it. She needed that validation from friends, from guys, from anyone, because she wasn’t getting it inside.
And then she landed the Aerie campaign, the leader of the body positively movement. Finally, there was a place for her in the modeling world where she didn’t have to feel ashamed for having cellulite or bigger thighs.
“There was no better campaign and pinnacle for me of coming on this journey than being in a campaign that was unretouched,” she says.
The best moment of the interview comes at the end when she admits that while Aerie doesn’t retouch her photos, she still has to deal with the issue of retouching at some of her other jobs.
“Right now I’m still in this limbo of I’m still not the supermodel, I’m not that celebrity that can demand to not be photoshopped in shoots. There’s still some clients that are going to photoshop me but at least I can not photoshop myself on my own platform.”
The person behind the camera corrects her, saying that she IS a supermodel because that is what a supermodel is now — a social media influencer. She’s no different than Kendall Jenner or Gigi Hadid, who also have huge social media followings. This realization causes her to break down crying.
“I never thought I could be one, being me,” she says. “I’m just glad I was able to do it as me.” .
[via Style Like U]
Image via Youtube
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Cristina Montemayor
Cristina is a Grandex Writer and Content Manager. She was an intern for over two years before she graduated a semester early to write about college full time, which makes absolutely no sense. She regretfully considers herself a Carrie, but is first and foremost a Rory. She tends to draw strong reactions from people. They are occasionally positive. You can find her in a bar as you're bending down to tie your shoes, drinking Dos XX and drunk crying to Elton John. Email her: [email protected] (not .com).
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