Androgynous Models
Fashion
has been questioning the norm and playing with gender from as early as the 18th
century when a male with a wig and makeup was a symbol of power and in turn
masculinity, and the tanned buffed up farm labourer was nothing more that poor
scum to the world.
Androgyny
is the combination of masculine and feminine characteristics. Androgyny in the
terms of gender identity is someone who doesn’t fit neatly into the female or male
roles in society, blurred gender qualities are proven to be nothing new to the
fashion industry. In fact the popularity of genderless fashion in soaring sky
high in recent years.
Erika Linder is a Swedish born model who moved to Stockholm when she
was just 10. She was discovered outside a football stadium when she was 14 and
offered a job; however she then went on to study law before finally accepting
the offer 6 years later at the age of 20. She is now known as one of the
biggest androgynous models in the fashion industry. One of the bigger questions on everyone’s
mind however is where is the split or is there one? Is this simply a fashion
thing or did Erika blur her sexual appearances before this career choice. It therefore
seems important to point out that Erika is not a transgender, a title which understandably
androgynous models can occasionally be mistaken for.
Research
has reviled She does not desire to be a male, nor is she a male trapped inside
a females body. Androgynous style is about the merging of genders not the
reversal of, images are there to have the audience question, for many of Erika’s
followers and supporters they believe that beauty no longer has a sexuality and
it is nor the female attributes nor the male that ultimately draw your
attention to the model. The
24-year-old Los Angeles-based model, who lives in Silver Lake, Calif., with her
girlfriend and their dog Butters, isn’t trying to be rebellious or make
headlines. “I’m not out there saying, ‘I’m a guy,’ she said. “I don’t want to
be labelled. At the end of the day, I’m a girl. I don’t want to have a sex
change. I don’t want to only model the men’s stuff. I’m just good at doing
both.”
Erika has
always had a vision of modelling as herself, whether this is in the style of a female
or a male, although when looking at photo-shoots of the 24 year old, the
balance seems to be leaning towards the more masculine of the two styles. She’s
taken the public by storm, with many online posts claiming that there is a new
sexuality and it’s all about being in love with Erika. The fact that it can be
so globally appreciated that a female is bending the rules and re writing them
to fit her own style and her own preferences is a huge step for diversity in
fashion, and although the female posing as a male look is recreated by
designers and models every day in the fashion industry it isn’t often you would
have a female model who always has that edge about her.
‘My style
is unisex and with the brand I want to make stuff that's plain and simple to
match, and for everyone to wear. ‘this is a quote from her website www.erikalinder.com. It is backing up the
idea that androgynous means unisex, having both the qualities of a male and a female
and Erika is attempting to create and share a sense of style which unites both
the genders. Erika has been compared to countless celebrities and former models
such as Leonardo Dicaprio, Daria Werbowy,
Kirsten Stewart, the late River Phoenix occasionally even comparing herself to
backstreet boys Nick Carter, but at the end of the day the point is she is who
she wants to be which is herself.
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