Model of the Year - Alex Consani
The annual 2024 Fashion Awards were held in London, celebrating a year of remarkable designers, models, and catwalks. Garnering the most attention, the competition for the 2024 Model of the Year Award was intense, featuring nominees such as Anok Yai, Lui Wen, Amelia Gray, Alex Consani, and more. The Model of the Year Award was created to honor a model who has spent the last 12 months significantly contributing to the global fashion industry through a plethora of campaigns and runway appearances. This year’s winner - Alex Consani marked an especially impactful evening as she became the first transgender model of the year. During her acceptance speech, she paid tribute to the transgender models who she attributed to paving the way, specifically highlighting Black trans women including Dominique Jackson, Aaron Rose Philip, and Connie Fleming.
Courtesy of TagWalk
Alex Consani’s modeling career kicked off after signing with IMG Models in 2019. While she had been modeling at the young age of 12, her popularity remained fairly stagnant until she made her name known through TikTok in 2020. She quickly gained thousands of followers for her carefree and unique TikToks, creating a stable fanbase that adored her crazy personality and duality between her daily life and modeling career. By 2021, she had made her first runway debut for the womenswear SS 22 show by Tom Ford, featuring a belted blazer and a focus on gold accents. As she continued to gain influence on social media, the doors continued to open and she walked for Versace, Alexander McQueen, Hugo Boss, Burberry, Chloe, Coperni, and Roberto Cavalli before the advent of 2024.
Courtesy of Cosmopolitan
In 2024, one of her major highlights included walking for Victoria’s Secret’s “The Tour ‘23” show alongside previous icons such as Adriana Lima. Alex continued to make history as she was Victoria Secret’s first transgender model to walk the stage. She continues to speak out about the importance of inclusivity and diversity in the fashion industry, emphasizing the change is needed for the industry to flourish. Alex’s online fan base of over 4 million clearly adores her eccentric takes on casual TikTok trends, living vicariously through her lack of social anxiety in the heart of NYC. However, her fans just as readily tune in to Alex’s more serious videos expressing what it means to be breaking barriers as a trans model and how she wants to create opportunities to increase understanding and acceptance of queer communities.
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It’s clear Alex Consani has proved herself to have a growing impact on the fashion industry. From her likable personality and lack of reservation to her talents as a model, Alex shows potential to change the industry for better. She has publicly talked about many instances where she and other trans women were subject to discrimination and maintains her belief that as inclusivity increases, people will start to become accepting as they understand they are all equal. She’s also spoken out about deeper topics of discrimination in the industry, acknowledging that her ability to contribute to change in the industry partly comes from her privilege of being white. In an interview with Teen Vogue she said, “The personality that I have and the energy that I give is so heavily inspired by Black trans women. People see me as kitschy and different, but if you’re ever around a Black doll, then you kind of get the same energy that I’m celebrated for. I’m celebrated because I’m white.” As her message of queer inclusivity and advocation for diversity continues to reach more people, young aspiring models can continue to find hope and growing opportunities in the field.
Featured Image Courtesy of Yahoo