Jourdan Dunn has said that she still struggles with her body image despite her years in the fashion industry.
The catwalk star, who was teased for having “chicken legs” in her youth, said that at a time when “curviness” is considered one of the most desirable aesthetics on a woman’s body, she is not completely confident in her own figure, and that she once considered having calf implants.
Dunn told British Vogue: “Being a young girl, growing up in the industry and having your insecurities get you jobs – it’s highlighted.
“Being Caribbean, everybody in my family has curves. My mum is curvy, my cousins.
“Then seeing music videos… being at home and pretending I’m a video girl, then realising I can’t be a video girl because I ain’t got that to be backing it up, but, whatever, I’m going to still shake it! That was definitely a thing.”
She added: “When I was younger, I was actually thinking of having calf implants.”
The British model, 29, has walked for major designers such as Prada, Marc Jacobs, Jean Paul Gaultier, Louis Vuitton and Valentino, and she has worked for brands including Topshop, Burberry, Victoria’s Secret, Balmain, Maybelline New York, H&M and Selfridges.
Over the years she has criticised the fashion industry for a lack of diversity, and in 2014 she called out designers for “having just one ethnic model” in each runway show.
On speaking out about racism, she said: “I just said what was on my mind. I did start feeling like a lone voice because I felt like ‘I’m being vocal and my peers are being silent’.
“I was like, ‘I don’t want to talk about this anymore. Why am I the only one? You’re going through the same thing. You look like me.’”
But she added: “Everybody comes together and backs each other now. It’s not just one person.
“What I love about this generation is that everyone’s so fearless and everyone has a voice – people are not gonna let things slide anymore.”
Hailing the powers of social media, she said: “I don’t believe that it can go backwards because people won’t allow it.”
The full feature appears in the November issue of British Vogue, available via digital download and newsstands on October 4.