Ever go into a store and realize that all the mannequins are pretty much sample sized? For a lot of people this doesn’t seem to be something that needs to be changed sooner than later because they are just mannequins, and there’s so many issues in fashion and the curve community that need attention.
However, it’s about representation. Young girls constantly grow up with the mindset that you have to have a certain type of body in order for your clothes to look good on you because of what they see in store windows.
22 year old senior at Parsons School of Design, Nayyara Chue is still fighting to get more curve mannequins into stores, even after her campaign went viral last spring. Surprisingly she only was able to get 8,000 signatures. That’s astonishing because this is something that could really change body image, and it’s a great step towards body positivity!
Why more people in the curve community aren’t getting involved makes no sense to me.
Chue recently told CNN, “I’m not going to design for a size I can’t relate to anymore. To look for a plus-size mannequin, I’d have to go through every floor to find it. There was one size 22 in the entire school.” After her petition, Parsons added 17 curve size dress forms to it’s collection, but Chue is still petitioning for an additional order, like adding a size 26 dress form. It’s great to see her use her platform and talent to push the conversation forward, and I can only hope that more people see why this kind of issue needs more attention.
