& Other Stories launches campaign by transgender creatives

Gender fluidity has always had a place in fashion, from androgynous models to transgender runway queen Andreja Pejic. Now that transgender topics are trending, with highlights such as Caitlyn Jenner’s Vanity Fair cover, it was only a matter of time for the fashion world to take it to the next level.

Women’s fashion brand & Other Stories brought together a creative team consisting of five transgender individuals to promote their newest collection and “tell a story that broadens the view on gender in fashion”.

The campaign’s stars are Hari Nef, IMG’s first international transgender model, and Valentijn de Hingh, IMG’s first transgender signee who represented their Paris branch. In the brand’s promotional video they express how they feel about gender identity and the fashion industry. “Fashion has played a huge role in my process of constructing my identity,” says Nef.

Photographer Amos Mac states that “the category of male/female in fashion is an ancient thing” and thinks that fashion is “all about what you’re comfortable in”. This openness towards gender fluidity is becoming more accepted in society as transgendered individuals are taking prominent places in the media. Orange is the New Blacks’s Laverne Cox was named in the Time 100 most influential people list this April and Caitlyn Jenner had the whole world tweeting #MyNameIsCaitlyn.

Caitlyn Jenner has been widely lauded for her bravery and her beauty, but de Hingh warned for what she sees as a transition with a “glamoursauce”, regarding the capital Jenner was able to spend on her transformation. She recognises the dangers of equating a successful transition with being beautiful but appreciates that this media interest in the trans community can be a good thing. “Sometimes to get a political message across, having a commercial brand support an issue can actually help,” she told Women’s Wear Daily.

Here’s to seeing what this fresh show of support from the high street will do to help the transgender community get their message of acceptance out.

Sally Wiijers
Photo: Courtesy of & Other Stories