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“It’s finding ways in everyday life, in the mess, in the chaos, in the darkness to be like this is me, and I’m really special.”
Iskra Lawrence does it all, and she’s honest about all the ups and downs that come with that. As if being a widely beloved model, founder of Saltair and Self Funding and an advocate for body acceptance wasn’t enough, she added a baby into the mix this year. Ahead of The BodCon 2022, a virtual conference on February 17 focused on body confidence where Lawrence is a spotlight speaker, we caught up with her. She shared advice on how to use social media productively and the baby steps to take to fall in love with yourself. Lawrence also got candid about how modeling has shaped her life, the guilt that comes with motherhood and more.
You’ve long been a proponent of body positivity. How has the space grown since you first started and where does it still need to evolve?
“I use the term ‘body acceptance’ because I originally didn’t know the difference, and I was lucky enough to get educated online. I feel like there’s a constant evolution of understanding movements. I think that there is more visible representation now, but there still isn’t representation higher up in boardrooms, people who are getting to make the decisions about the representation, and so I think that long term, I just hope to see that the people at the top are able to share their power a little bit more. And of course, it’s more about the policies than anything.
There’s so much you can do about representation and diverse campaigns, but if policies don’t change and become more inclusive, if we don’t get better access for people with disabilities, if we don’t change the system that is still set up to be racist, there’s only so far we can push. So I think that it really comes down to getting more people represented in positions of power and doing that by hopefully supporting our youth to know that they can be in positions of power, and just really showing people that there’s more they can do than just being the visible representation. There’s the actual work behind the scenes that’s also very important.”
What is a self-care ritual that makes you feel empowered?
“So, weirdly, during my postpartum journey, I really lost my sense of self and I stopped showering. I literally got to a place of feeling so messy that I didn’t shower for days on end, and that made me feel even worse. So, honestly, the most simple thing that I find changes how I feel about myself is jumping in the shower, and that’s why I created Saltair because I really thought that it was a powerful moment for myself. I’ve cried in the shower. I’ve had big ideas in the shower. I’ve just felt this solitude in a good way, like escapism. So that, for me, is a really powerful form of self-care. Just simply getting up in the morning and showering and just giving yourself that fresh start to just think, ‘Okay, today’s gonna be a good day. I’ve got lots of things to do. Let’s not let it overwhelm me, but let’s just think it’s exciting.’”
She is serving realness, curves and elegance included. You have probably seen Iskra Lawrence on the #AerieREAL campaign, spreading a message of self-love. Whether it is tummy rolls, body hair, birthmarks, or tattoos, she believes everybody should be celebrated for who they are and not by how they look. Iskra Lawrence is sweeping the social media scene with unretouched photos, unafraid to speak up about body dysmorphia, eating disorders, and the raw definition of self-love. Some people call it controversial, others call it courage. No matter what you cannot deny that she is making an impact on so many people today. Iskra chats about her journey to self-love in our 16th issue.
Where did your journey as a body-positive model start? I’ve been modeling for 15 years. I started out in the UK, and initially, there weren’t a lot of girls my size back then. I didn’t fit into a lot of sample sizing. I did enter a competition, and I didn’t win. But I did get scouted. Unfortunately, as I said, I didn’t fit into a lot of sample sizing and got body-shamed when I was 14 and 15 years old. I struggled, and my agency really tried to make my waist smaller but couldn’t. It was my body shape, and I had always been a bit curvier. They told me if I couldn’t hit their measurements, I wouldn’t be a successful model. It got stuck in my head, and I dropped from the agency. I tried about ten other agencies, and no one would take me. All of their excuses came back to my size and me being too curvy. I took it personally and really set out to change myself but didn’t know how to do so in a healthy way.
So some modeling agencies said you were too big, and plus-size agencies said you were too small. How did you deal with these body categories? How did the power of unretouched photos come to you? After a bit, I started carving out a niche of people just loving themselves for who they are at their healthiest size instead of trying to fit into either category. I ended up working with a bunch of my close friends, and I created a company called Model Kind. We created a charity calendar to go towards fighting cervical cancer. During that time, I gathered a group of my friends for the calendar, and no one looked alike. I hadn’t seen anything like it. When the photographer said he was going to retouch some of the photos, I told him not to because everyone looked beautiful. That really uncovered my love for no retouching and explaining how nearly every image we consume has been retouched. Retouching is the standard. Most women think they need to have flawless skin and have their hair perfectly sleek. It’s an unattainable way for us to be because Photoshop is everywhere.
Iskra is on the cover of Glamour’s Digital issue for September 2019. Read the interview down below & make sure to check out the pictures in the gallery!
Seynabou Cissé, Iskra Lawrence, Alessandra Garcia Lorido, Yvonne Simone, and Solange van Doornare powerful, ambitious, and of course, beautiful. But unlike the group that inspired the original supermodel phenomenon of the 1980s and 90s, the new crop are all a size 12 and above. They represent Senegal, England, and the Oneida Nation. They’re immigrants and mixed race. They’re accidental activists and eating-disorder-awareness advocates. They have professional backgrounds in tech and health sciences. Together they’re ascending not just as curve models, but as supermodels for a new age. The New Supers, if you will.
I met these women on a 100-degree day this July in New York City’s Chinatown, a bustling, historic neighborhood where—appropriately—old meets new. It was one of the hottest days of the summer, yet all five arrived energized and ready to work. Each had agreed to pose for Glamour’s September cover, the marquee piece of a larger package which explores what it’s like to be a plus-size woman during this particular cultural moment.
If you’re not already familiar with their names, you’ve likely seen their faces: Garcia Lorido has walked the runway for Dolce & Gabbana, appeared in a campaign for fellow model Emily Ratajkowski’s body-conscious essentials line Inamorata, and is featured front and center in Gap’s fall 2019 denim commercials. Cissé landed a Sephora campaignand a spot on Christian Siriano’s runway. Simone went from America’s Next Top Model to Chromat’s New York Fashion Week show. Van Doorn has modeled Rihanna’s lingerie line, Savage x Fenty, and appeared in a lookbook for designer Tanya Taylor. And Lawrence, having been featured in several inclusive campaigns—including a key spot as one of AerieREAL’s Role Models—has used her platform to advocate for awareness around diversity in fashion.
None of the five necessarily knew that curve modeling would become their lane, but it’s a space where each found a home, one where they’d not only be accepted but be celebrated, though it wasn’t always a smooth road. Lawrence, for example, tells me how, having made it to the finals of a local Faces to Watch competition at 14 years old, she felt ridiculed for not fitting into sample sizes. At a gig, she says, another model pulled her aside and told her, “Oh, you know there’s something called plus-size modeling?” Until then, she didn’t. Same for Cissé, who says “I remember typing out to my friend, ‘Oh, wow, modeling is seeming more realistic because I’m in New York and opportunities are here, but I just have to get to a size four and then I’ll think about it.’ I didn’t know that curve modeling was a thing.”
It’s not just a thing: it’s a key part of the plus-size retail industry, which is estimated to be worth $21 billion today and projected to hit more than $100 billion during the next few years due to latent demand.
How did we get here? During the last five years, the body-positivity movement found its footing, and conversations about it have been catapulted into mainstream media and retail. It’s a movement that owes thanks to Instagram style titans and moguls in the making like Gabi Fresh and Nadia Aboulhosn, and rising social media stars like size-24 La’Shaunae Steward. Thanks to greater visibility through mainstream campaigns from Target, Calvin Klein, and JC Penney. Thanks to Dietland and Shrill, two popular TV shows that featured visibly plus-size leading actresses bringing the fat experience described by authors Sarai Walker and Lindy West to life. To vocal activists sick and tired of the mockery around fat bodies. Thanks to pioneering women of color, like designer Monif C, stylist Susan Moses, and editor Madeline Figueroa Jones, who have worked in this space for decades laying the groundwork for a broader movement. And in a way thanks to that Meisel cover, because now we all know Ashley Graham’s name, we’ve seen Tess Holliday grab magazine covers, and we’ve watched Precious Lee dominate the runway.
But for all the headline-winning successes, the I’m No Angel campaigns, and the calls for increasing visibility, many women have felt, justifiably, that body positivity is exclusionary, that it exists for white women to feel OK about their average bodies, that it’s bullshit. Body positivity, at its core, isn’t just about making people feel good about themselves (though that’s a great side effect, and hopefully one that extends to all bodies). It’s also not just about fashion or justabout having a positive self-image. Body positivity is about smashing stereotypes, it’s about recognizing the innate privilege some bodies hold, and it’s about challenging long-held beliefs about what’s considered beautiful while promoting real diversity and inclusion.
In many ways, though, fashion’s slow but steady adoption of body positivity has validated the cynics: If the Meisel cover was one of the first times body positivity made its way into a high-fashion cover, one of its implied truths was that curvy was okay as long as it was a very specific type of curvy—hourglass, flat stomach, thin face, and above all, white. “White plus bodies are much more acceptable,” says Cissé. “It always kills me when I’m at a job and I’m painfully aware that I’m the token person [of color] in the room. That’s always hard.”
“I’m a size 12,” says Garcia Lorido. “I don’t represent girls that are size 22. I don’t know what that feels like, and I shouldn’t be speaking for them. I shouldn’t be representing them. I can represent myself; if they relate, if they are inspired by me, then great.”
The next logical question: Why don’t as many opportunities exist for women over a certain size? Lots of explanations have been thrown around. Some brands might not have the capital to produce samples in extended sizing, while for others there’s an insistence that “aspirational” (read “smaller”) models are what sells. Some agencies might say clients don’t book larger models so it doesn’t make sense to rep them. Casting directors could argue that agencies aren’t representing or training larger models to compete. Each could be partially responsible for how pervasive an issue this continues to be, and it echoes much of the cultural attitude toward larger bodies, both in and outside of fashion. Without a clear party to be held accountable or take the initiative to continue the evolution of inclusivity, it’s challenging to enforce change.
Lawrence understands this well and thinks her light skin, blue eyes, and acceptable curves may have given her access—“I understand that I’m not a marginalized body,” she says. “I am an accepted body type and shape and my skin color. And I hope that sometimes people will just use me as a test because they want to go further.” Now that she’s among the most sought-after—and debated—curve models, she has the leverage to ask clients to push their boundaries a little further too. “I’m trying to open the door and trying to change the system,” she says. Not just for clients she works with, but in potential future projects of her own.
Iskra Lawrence Has Redefined Her Insecurities—And She Wants You To Do The Same
Iskra Lawrence stepped into the crowded Women’s Health photo studio, stripped out of her streetwear, then tried on a bunch of swimsuits in front of a set full of strangers for a completely unretouched photoshoot like it was no biggie. And while this might seem like your own personal nightmare, for the international model, Aerie RoleModel, Instagram influencer, and body acceptance advocate, it’s just another day at work.
But that level of confidence doesn’t just happen overnight. Iskra’s put in the work to get to that positive headspace, and she had a lot to overcome. “It was hard as a teenager,” she told me over the phone prior to our shoot. “I was curvier at a young age and was confused by my body.” She tried to fake some self-assuredness by wearing more makeup, push-up bras, and revealing clothes. “Being sexy was the only way I felt like I was getting validation for my body.”
If being a teenager wasn’t hard enough already, she entered the modeling world at 13 and had a new set of peers to compare herself to—a group that consisted exclusively of sample-sized models. “Relatively I was just a normal, healthy-looking teen. But I developed body dysmorphia and an eating disorder because I had these unrealistic comparisons.”
She spent hours measuring every part of her body, but the main focus was her strong legs. “I never wore ankle boots, never wore skirts that cut me off at the wrong height, and even seeing knee-high boots on set would make me nervous.” The notion of a thigh gap (when you stand feet-together and the inside of your thighs don’t touch) was something that also consumed her thoughts. “My thighs rub together,” she says. “Even if I was unhealthfully restricting [which she was] and trying every fad diet possible [which she did], I could never get a thigh gap.”
Iskra Lawrence is so much more than a pretty face: a body positive influencer, an ambassador for the National Eating Disorders Association, and a full-time model (she has modeled for Aerie and has also developed her own perfume line). With her efforts, the world is becoming more authentic, a change that she credits to the rise in social media. “People are more aware of the individual power they have in trying to implement more diversity. Social media has been the best platform because it’s enabled us to democratize our own media empires,” she says of an opportunity to encourage diversity. “It’s up to us to go out and seek new information. The world’s very diverse and that’s what makes it so beautiful.” In addition to the already growing list of accomplishments, as a part of her dedication to body positivity, she’s given a TED talk and guest-authored a number of articles across publications on the importance of self-love and diversity. Last year, moreover, she was named as an ambassador of the Prince’s Trust & L’Oréal Paris.
“I think the modeling and beauty industry fed into female insecurity in the hopes that it would encourage them to buy things, but there’s been such a great shift. Now, it’s actually about someone’s confidence or creativity – whatever makes them an awesome person, instead of the way that they look,” describes Lawrence who has taken the catwalk to celebrate diversity at the Le Défilé L’Oréal Paris during Paris Fashion Week. Lawrence’s advocacy for body positivity doesn’t stop there: She works with the NEDA as a brand ambassador working to acknowledge the issues and promote the resources offered. “For a long time, issues like mental health and eating disorder weren’t talked about and still have a stigma around them. It’s important to normalize them, and it’s okay to seek help,” she affirms as the organization is geared towards raising awareness of the disorders, creating communities for support and recovery, funding research, and giving life-saving resources into the effort.
Plus-size role model Iskra Lawrence: ‘I will wear what I want to wear… and you won’t stop me’
From Kidderminster to international icon status, Iskra Lawrence has over four million Instagram followers who love her body positive messages. Here she discusses everything from stripping off on the subway to coping with her growing fame.
You can tell a lot about an interviewee from what they do immediately before and after your chat. Iskra Lawrence first checks that I’ve tasted one of the doughnuts she bought for everyone (I have). Then as her day with team Stella comes to end, she is busy googling where the nearest Boots is so that she can stock up on make-up removal wipes. ‘They’re only £1.50 here but if I buy them in America, they’re $6.’
With 4.4 million Instagram followers (who adore her steady stream of body-confidence messages), contracts with several major fashion and beauty brands including Persona by Marina Rinaldi, and a schedule so packed that she has only spent three days at home since Christmas, Iskra Lawrence – who grew up in Kidderminster in a family that ‘bought Tesco’s own-brand beans over Heinz’ – seems like the ultimate modern model success story. But boy, has she grafted for it. Perhaps that’s why her feet seem to have stayed so firmly on the ground.
‘There are stories where a model gets scouted on the street and the next week she’s in a Burberry campaign. That might happen for you, but that doesn’t happen for most people and it’s not realistic,’ the 28-year-old tells me, sweeping her newly silver hair over her shoulder (the result of a project with L’Oréal). ‘I tell girls all the time, you just have to keep on going, it’s not going to be easy.’
Iskra just launched her very own Doughnut with the doughnut shop “Dough” for fashion month.
Artisinal doughnut shop Dough has collaborated with model Iskra Lawrence for a limited edition doughnut only available during Fashion Month. The brioche doughnut is topped with a white chocolate and raspberry glaze along with a white chocolate drizzle and dried raspberries and is available through the end of February. 10% of the proceeds from the sale of this collaborative doughnut will benefit the efforts of the National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA).
Iskra is a brand ambassador for NEDA as well as an #AerieReal Role Model who supports body positivity and self-care. She said,
“I am beyond excited that Dough has created a doughnut in my name to celebrate fashion month. The Iskra doughnut is made with some of my all-time favorite flavors and natural ingredients. It’s a fun reminder that we should all be able to savor life’s special moments, reject any social pressure or toxic diet culture messaging, and try to stay focused on fully enjoying our lives and love for food!”
Dough has done some VIP collaborations in the past, including ones with Chrissy Teigen and Kevin Durant. Dough owner Steve Klein said this one came to be because,
“I’d seen Iskra eating our doughnuts, and she always had such a great reaction to them, so we already knew she was a fan. We love the work she does, and the fact that she is a model who still enjoys sweets. I sent her an Instagram DM, and let her know that we’d like to make a doughnut for her, and she was ecstatic. She let me know her favorite flavors are white chocolate and raspberry, so our chef Laura Palace came up with a phenomenal glaze that blends both of those, and topped it off with fresh dried raspberries and a white chocolate drizzle.”
Iskra Lawrence is an english model & body activist. She was born in Wolverhampton on September 11th 1990 and grew up in Kidderminster, Worcestershire. She is a contributor to Self magazine, and was the founding managing editor at Runway Riot, a website meant to be an outlet for women of all shapes and sizes to learn about glamour. Lawrence models for, and is the global Role Model for, Aerie, a brand of clothing from American Eagle Outfitters. She is also a National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA) brand ambassador and creator of the NEDA Inspires Award.
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