THE RISE OF THE MALE MODEL
Clockwise, left to right: Willy Cartier who was Frank Ocean's rumored love interest and the son of French model, Lea Cartier/ Effeminate Andrej Pejic/ Dudley O'Shaunghnessy whose blonde hair, bright green eyes juxtaposes his mixed race complexion saw him get hot and heavy with Rihanna in her 'We Found Love' music video/ classic face David Gandy who at 33 is still going stronger than any 20 year-old and has recently appeared in M&S's Christmas campaign/ Chico Lachowski has gained mass followers on instagram; not only is he a Chace Crawford, if not better, standard of good-looking but he is also a doting father and husband, all in all he's most women's dream/Willy Cartier/Chico Lachowski..and Baby.
In the days of Gisele, Christy Turlington and even with the modernity of Freja Beha Erichsen, male models were merely a prop to enhance the beauty of the unattainable female. We wanted their clothes and we wanted their men. But that was all they were, 'men' with hidden identities. Even when Jennifer Anniston's then-boyfriend Paul Sculfor propelled and not to mention Katy Perry's flame Baptiste Giabiconi propelled to fame after their women were done with them, so was the public.
But with male models increasingly pushing the boundaries of masculinity and the demise of the 90s female supermodel perhaps male models are finally proving their worth at the forefront of fashion.
Take Andrej Pejic, who baffled the industry with his ethereal beauty that had men questioning whether he was in fact male and us women asking how could he prettier than us?
The 22 year-old said; “Now I’m comfortable in my skin, and for my look to be celebrated is great. My look is very personal to me. When I started experimenting, it was a personal decision because I was unhappy. It wasn’t something I did for attention". The model has walked for Jean Paul Gaultier in a see-through wedding dress, ranked 98 on FHM's 100 Sexiest Women in the World in 2011 and posed proactively alongside gorgeous girls..as a gorgeous girl. Willy Cartier, a mixture of Sengalian, Vietnamese and French descent, has hair most women could only dream of growing and style most would envy [i'd recommend taking a peek at his instagram too which sees him lovingly carrying his mother in his arms on her wedding day...aww]. It seems while classic faces such as David Gandy and Chico Lachowski embody masculinity, 2013 is ever increasingly propelling those who blur the lines of sexuality and gender into the spot light who showing the fashion industry their importance whilst challenging gender stereotypes.
If you can't beat them you may as well join them.
Clockwise, left to right: Willy Cartier who was Frank Ocean's rumored love interest and the son of French model, Lea Cartier/ Effemin...