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The fashion industry might be changing, but the ultimate goal of a truly diverse representation of men and women remains uncertain.
Models portraying a spectrum of race, age, size and disabilities have inspired change and proven that beauty can be everywhere.
But how long do we have to go to until fashion is for all?
Here, models speak out about why diversity in fashion matters and how the industry is changing.
Quotes On Why Diversity In Fashion And Beauty Matters
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This February, HuffPost UK Style is running a month-long focus on our Fashion For All campaign, which aims to highlight moments of colour, size, gender and age diversity and disability inclusivity in the fashion and beauty world.
We will be sharing moments of diversity at London Fashion Week with the hashtag #LFW4All and we’d like to invite you to do the same. If you'd like to blog about diversity or get involved, email us here.
Diversity In Fashion 2015
1. Plus-Size blogger Jessica Kane redefines “brave”(01 of23)
Here’s the thing about wearing a bathing suit: it isn’t brave. Regardless of size, shape, height, or any other factors, to wear beach-appropriate clothing while on a beach isn’t brave, especially when “brave” is being used as a pejorative — a.k.a. it’s “so brave” to wear a bathing suit if you’re outside the size 2 spectrum.And blogger Jessica Kane shut that down. Taking to Instagram after she was heralded for being “brave” to beach it sans cover-up, she reminded followers that that she spends her time “worrying about things [she] CAN control, and this day [she] was only thinking about how fab [she] felt.” Which is the way that it should be. Shut it down, brave-sayers, and stop perpetuating two-dimensional beauty ideals. (credit:Instagram/jessica_kane)
2. Modcloth drops its plus-size label(02 of23)
Three cheers for Modcloth: earlier this year, the online retailer dropped its “plus” section and amalgamated its clothing sizes — which was a step in the right direction, especially after the brand had said there were “road blocks” to offering a broad range of sizes. “I think there is still an outdated notion in the [fashion] industry that ‘plus’ should be separate because it’s less aspirational, or because that consumer is less fashion-forward, or less willing to spend on herself,” said founder Susan Gregg Koger. “But what we’re hearing and seeing from our community is that it is simply not true.”Accurate, Susan. (credit:Instagram/modcloth)
3. The rise of #hashtag moments(03 of23)
Say what you will about social media, but this year, its ability connect people and to inspire change was unparalleled — especially on the fashion front. Hashtags like #ThisIsPlus, #EffYourBeautyStandards (though it started last year), #PlusIsEqual, #DropThePlus, #ImNoAngel (started by Lane Bryant), and #BodyLove were a fast and effective way to make a statement while simply being yourself. Through Twitter and Instagram, followers could connect with each other and introduce movements to their own audiences, spawning new ways to talk about fashion, beauty, size and why the existing norms are absolutely nonsensical and need a revamp. (credit:SILVANA DENKER)
4. Maria Borges rocks her natural hair at the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show(04 of23)
The Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show is a major production (as we all know), and long, volumized hair extensions play a pivotal role in it. But this year, model Maria Borges did her. Opting out of a wig or extensions, Borges told her agent that she wanted to walk in the show with her natural hair, and that’s exactly what she did. Which is even cooler when you realize how her natural hair makes her feel: “Since I’ve gone natural, I feel younger and fresher,” she told i-D. “With my short hair I don’t feel like I need makeup — maybe I’ll use a little foundation, but I’ll skip blush or lipstick.” Best. (credit:Dimitrios Kambouris via Getty Images)
5. Trans Models launches in New York(05 of23)
This autumn, Trans Models announced its launch in New York, officially becoming the country’s third trans agency. Founded by Peche Di, the model-turned-agency founder sought to create a place in the city that represented transgender talent specifically, and signed 19 models (plus makeup and hair stylists) to Trans Models, which seeks to offer an alternative to the current industry landscape. (credit:Instagram/transmodelsnyc)
6. Tracey Norman is revealed as America’s first black transgender model(06 of23)
Our parents grew up with her (and if you’re acquainted well with the beauty industry — specifically Clairol — you’ve seen her before too), but it wasn’t until this month that Tracey Norman revealed as America’s first black transgender model. In a piece for New York Magazine, the now 63-year-old Norman opened up about her exclusive contract with Avon, her debut on the box of Clairol Born Beautiful hair dye, and how the industry had no idea she was trans. The woman’s a force to be reckoned with, so make sure to read the full story here. (credit:Instagram/thecut)
7. Ashley Graham gets her own lingerie line(07 of23)
September brought some exciting news for fans of Ashley Graham: the plus-size model debuted her own lingerie collection (Modern Boudoir) for Addition Elle. And while the line itself was exciting, so was Graham’s brand of empowerment in which she reminded that conforming or aspiring to a certain size serves no one.“I love my body, I love my super-hourglass shape, and I love showing it off,” she has said. “Young girls don’t have much to look at, curvey women are not on covers of magazines, they’re not talked about on social media as much as other celebrities. Jennifer Lawrence is the media’s poster girl for curves — she’s tiny.” (credit:Addition Elle)
8. PLUS Model Magazine lands its first male model(08 of23)
Proving the fashion industry’s still got a long way to go, it took until December 2015 for the first plus-size male model to appear on the cover of a magazine. (Come on, guys.) But Tremayne Williams used his opportunity to open up to the magazine about embracing the idea of “plus size,” as well as his plans to make 2016 a year in which he helps advance male plus-size models as a whole.“To me, being plus size is not something you should be ashamed of,” he told the magazine. “I know I’m not a small man and that’s fine. All women are beautiful and plus size women should own their beauty. You are PLUS!” (credit:PLUS Model Magazine)
9. Madeline Stuart makes her runway debut(09 of23)
Last season, "American Horror Story’s" Jamie Brewer became the first person with Down's syndrome to walk the runway during Fashion Week, and then this September, 18-year-old Madeline Stuart followed in the actress’ footsteps. Walking during New York Fashion Week for FTL Moda, the Australian model made some serious professional bounds after her Facebook photos went viral a few months before, so here’s to seeing her walk a lot more as the fashion weeks begin this winter — especially since her social media presence rivals the industry’s biggest names (and the woman’s personal sense of style is seriously beyond). (credit:Chance Yeh via Getty Images)
10. Models in wheelchairs took to the runway at NYFW(10 of23)
And earlier this year (specifically in February), FTL Moda broke barriers again as their F/W fashion show featured models in wheelchairs to further promote diversity in the industry. Working in conjunction with Models of Diversity — an agency that campaigns for the diversity of models and talent — the show also featured British personal trainer, Jack Eyers, who’d lost his leg at 16, and featured designs by Italian designer Antonio Urzi. So more of this in 2016, thank you. (credit:Frazer Harrison via Getty Images)
UP NEXT: Fashion's Biggest WTF Moments(11 of23)
1. Kylie Jenner covers Interview in a wheelchair(12 of23)
For reasons I hope none of us understand, Interview magazine put Kylie Jenner in a gold-plated wheelchair, and then slapped that image on the cover of its December issue. Predictably, there was a backlash, with 32-year-old Gemma Flanagan (a disabled model from Liverpool) recently posing the same way as Jenner to prove just how inappropriate Interview’s choice was. Worse yet? Interview defended its choice:"At Interview, we are proud of our tradition of working with great artists and empowering them to realize their bold and often bold visions," they said in a statement. "The Kylie Jenner cover by Steven Klein, which references the British artist Allen Jones, is a part of this tradition, placing Kylie in a variety of positions of power and control and exploring her image of vast media scrutiny."Also known as: an ableist photoshoot. (credit:Interview Magazine)
2. Blackface at Claudio Cutugno(13 of23)
No. No, no, no. Here is when blackface is okay: never. Never, under any circumstances, including runway fashion shows, is blackface a viable option. But here were the models at Claudio Cutugno this past February, faces and necks painted black with glitter on top. Apparently, the designer was inspired by artist Emilio Isgro (who creates art with bees), and were meant to look like the models were being swarmed with insects, but . . . no. Nope. Mainly because it is 2015 and regardless of what this look was "supposed" to be, it certainly looked like something else that absolutely all of us know to be offensive, racist, and just plain bad. Get it together, Cutugno. (credit:Getty Images)
3. Racism in the beauty industry (like, in general)(14 of23)
But Claudio Cutugno was just one designer to participate in the fashion and beauty industries’ racist dialogue. As outlined by Nykhor Paul in an Instagram post, the white narrative once again dictated beauty norms, especially at fashion shows, where Paul had to bring her own makeup."Dear white people in the fashion world!" she wrote. "Please don’t take this the wrong way, but it’s time you people get your shit right when it comes to our complexion! Why do I have to bring my own makeup to a professional show when all the other white girls don’t have to do anything but show up, wtf! I’m tired of complaining about not getting [booked] as a Black model, and I’m definitely super-tired for apologizing for my black-ness! ...Why can’t we be part of fashion fully and equally?"A terrific question. Especially since all the industry needs is common sense. Read: buying products that work with every skin colour, which takes like, what — one trip to Sephora? WTF. (credit:Instagram/nykhor)
4. Met Gala: China Through The Looking Glass(15 of23)
I mean, why? Okay: the purpose of this year’s Met Gala was to celebrate China and its cultural impact, which is great in theory if you assume the event would acknowledge North America’s rich history of ostracizing Chinese immigrants to the point of trying to push them out of the country. But no, it didn’t— so instead, the event became a mecca of cultural appropriation (see: Emma Roberts wearing chopsticks in her hair) and jokes at the hands of host Joel McHale who opened with a bit about opium and Jackie Chan films. The only winner? Rihanna, who showed up wearing Chinese couture by Guo Pei, who had two garments in the exhibition and has also recently collaborated with MAC. (credit:Instagram/emmaroberts)
Valentino's 'Wild Africa' show(16 of23)
Well here we are, friends. 2015, and Valentino’s spring show showcased a slew of white models in cornrows, bongo drums, and whatever-the-hell Maria Grazia Chiuri and Pierpaolo Piccioli attributes to Africa — or "wild" Africa (which does not make any of this better). In 2015. With white models walking in an Africa-themed show, wearing dreadlocks. See also: Why? No. Stop it and think about what you’re doing, everyone involved in this. Africa is not a commodity white people get to pluck from in hopes of feeling cutting edge or relevant. We have a word for that. It’s "appropriation." (credit:Getty Images)
6. Junya Watanabe’s African-themed show(17 of23)
And again, this. But this time, Junya Watanabe paid tribute to the continent by decking out white male models in African pieces, and critics praised it for being a commentary on colonialism. However, in the words of Refinery29 writer LeeAnn Duggan, this is colonialism: "A spree through African culture where the Westerner emerges more beautiful and with cooler accessories, but with no greater ability to see or hear the people who created them." (credit:Catwalking via Getty Images)
7. Caitlyn Jenner makes a 'man in a dress' comment(18 of23)
Considering Caitlyn Jenner has only recently come out as transgender, it makes sense that she’s still learning about the political and social impact of being a very public representative of trans people. But that being said, her comments to TIME last week were still grossly off the mark. Stating the importance of dressing the part because nobody feels comfortable around a "man in a dress," she eventually issued an apology since her comments were met with understandable upset."I think I caused a lot of hurt with this comment, and I’m truly sorry," she said in an op-ed posted on Whosay. "What I was trying to say is that our world is really still a binary one, and that people who look 'visibly transgender' sometimes can struggle for acceptance and may be treated poorly by others. And while this may be true, it’s also something that needs to change." (credit:Gilbert Carrasquillo via Getty Images)
8. 'Zoolander 2’s' transgender joke(19 of23)
Considering how far we’ve come since the release of "Zoolander" (as a people, and also as consumers of comedy), it was downright disappointing to see the new trailer feature Benedict Cumberbatch as an androgynous model met with tired, damaging, and ignorant comments about his body and gender. A bummer in and of itself, but when you think of how many people this sloppy and embarrassing writing had to go through, it’s downright heartbreaking. Know better, Hollywood (and writers/actors/directors who populate it). (credit:YouTube)
9. Norbert Beska’s refugee-inspired photo shoot(20 of23)
Currently, our primary social narrative is the displacement of millions of Syrian refugees who are desperately fleeing their homeland in the wake of war and terrorism. Which I guess is why photographer Norbert Beska staged a "refugee-inspired" fashion editorial that saw models wearing designer pieces amongst a DP camp backdrop. Seriously. Like, actually. As if being a refugee is romantic or glamorous and not at all defined by the trauma of having to leave behind everything you know and love in order to, you know, survive. Just don’t, you guys. (credit:Norbert Baksa)
10. Rick Owens featured human backpacks(21 of23)
Let’s stick to the facts: in October, Rick Owens sent models wearing models (yes, like human backpacks) during his S/S show to depict "sisterhood." Sure. (credit:Getty Images)
11. Giuliana Rancic made derogatory comments about Zendaya’s dreadlocks(22 of23)
Oscar commentary this year was bleak. But it was especially bad when "Fashion Police" co-host Giuliana Rancic described Zendaya’s dreadlocks as making the actress looked like she "smelled like patchouli or weed." (Which, like, what the hell?) So Zendaya responded accordingly, taking to Instagram to defend her hair, her right to wear dreadlocks, the history of dreadlocks, and to offer this: "There is a fine line between what is funny and disrespectful." Rancic — fortunately — went on to apologize. (credit:Steve Granitz via Getty Images)
Dsquared2 did 'Dsquaw'(23 of23)
You read that correctly. During Milan Fashion Week in March, Dsquared2 presented "Dsquaw," a line consisting of tribal-print leggings, fur and leather coats, and feathered accents — all under the incredibly racist/ignorant line's name. Understandably, critics were unhappy, citing cultural misappropriation as well as full-on plagiarism, making this arguably one of the worst WTF of the year. (credit:Getty Images)