Monday, February 13, 2012

Andrej Pejic, androgynous model, not so healthy role model

Andrej Peji
There is a lot of buzz about Andrej Pejic, an androgynous model from Australia. Andrej Pejic is a 20 year old male Serbian Australian model. He was born in Serbia and moved with his family in 2000 to Melbourne, Australia. 
 
He is a model in high demand for both women's and men's fashion shows.  In 2011, he ranked number 18 among the models.com Top 50 Male Models list and he was number 98 in FHM magazine's 100 Sexiest Women in the World 2011. He has also been named one of OUT Magazine's 100 Most Compelling People of 2011.

He has facial features of a woman and appears to do everything to maintain his feminine looks. Most of his modeling work is done as a woman. He is tall, thin, flat chested, has no chest or facial hair and looks frail and unhealthy. Information available on web suggests his measurements are: height 6’2, chest 35”, waist 28”. There is no mention of the weight but pictures show him tall, thin like a tooth pick, frail, underweight and unhealthy.

Andrej Peji
The IDEAL WEIGHT for men and women of his height will be as follows:

Height
Low
Target
High

6' 0"
138
159
179
WOMEN
6' 2"
153
175
197
MEN

Andrej definitely looks underweight and his waist at 28” (may be as small as 25”) is too small for a man taller than 6 feet. Disturbingly, in interviews he has indicated that he works out to lose even more weight, not to build muscles:

“You can’t eat much if you want to do this. To do womenswear I have to be disciplined. My waist has gone from 29 to 25 inches and my hips are 35 inches…Not that I’ve ever wanted to [bulk up], but most female models don’t have any muscle mass, It’s a delicate state to be in.”

Andrej Pejic
It is unfortunate that a model has to push his/her health to deterioration to get a job. Raving Andrej Pejic as a successful model can encourage girls to look thinner to be able to compete a man for modeling job. This is all done at the expense of risking their health.

Fashion and modeling industry has been known for eating disorders, appetite suppression and fetal consequences. In 2007 deaths of tow models (and sisters) Eliana and Luisel Ramos, ages 22 and 18, respectively, was attributed to malnutrition and anorexia. In November 2010, another model Isabelle Caro, 28, died of anorexia and she weighed only 68 pounds.

First of all, it makes no sense to find a man to model as a woman. A thin man modeling as a woman may be a fantasy come true for a gay fashion designer but it is not a healthy trend. There is no shortage of pretty women and if you want a female model get a real woman with real feminine parts.  It is better to encourage young women to put emphasis on feeling and looking healthy as opposed to weakening their bodies to get a modeling job competing with men.

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