ENAM Asiama, 20, from Birmingham, UK, is a 'black, fat, queer femme model' who is redefining beauty stereotypes within the fashion industry. She first became a model to celebrate and represent the different intersects of her identity - being black, fat, queer and femme. Enam receives a lot of hate and criticism online because of her size, but she doesn’t let it stop her. She told Truly: “When I read all of this hate I thought, 'I am going to love myself and keep doing what I do'. I don’t care what others think of me.” Enam’s career in high-end fashion has seen her work with brands such as Marc Jacobs and Paco Rabanne. She uses her platform to fight for equality and to create a space in the industry that represents plus size, black models. She says: “Through my modelling, I want to advocate for the representation of all shapes and sizes because everyone deserves to be represented and celebrated.” Today we see Enam, along with her friends Vanessa and Yolanda, working on a project called ‘Thank You For Playing With Me’. It seeks to document different perspectives and experiences of people from minority groups. Enam says: “I love this project because I want what I do to have a sense of purpose.”
Photography: Yolanda Y. Liou @yolandaliou
Styling/ Makeup/ Talent: @enamasiama @iamvanessarussell