Andreja was born Andrej but was always drawn to women’s clothes and makeup. But sex reassignment is expensive and long-drawn—modelling, on the other hand, came easy to this waifish Serbian-Aussie, who Jean Paul Gaultier described as an ‘otherworldly beauty’. Even as a male model, Pejic, with a full platinum blonde mane and bee-stung lips, showcased more androgynous and feminine fashion, once appearing as a bride for Gaultier’s couture show in spring 2011. As lucrative as her dual identity on the ramp was, the model said to People, “About a year and a half ago, I reevaluated things. I was proud of my gender nonconforming career. But my biggest dream was to be comfortable in my own body. I have to be true to myself and the career is just going to have to fit around that.”
A journey that began at 9, when Pejic started taking puberty blockers, has now finally reached its destination. The show for Giles Deacon in London is her first as a woman after her sex reassignment procedure was completed in the US last year. On Instagram and Twitter, the influential Pejic is a vocal supporter of transgender rights—and she’s generous with the off-runway beauty tricks too.
With the recent Diesel campaign featuring a model with leukoderma, the debut of a model with Downs Syndrome at NYFW and now Pejic, the fashion biz has become a more inclusive space that celebrates rather than airbrushes away differences. Besides being compassionate, this is also a smart move. The easiest way for your brand to be a hero is to find a model who already is one.
