Sports Illustrated Swimsuit model explains how magazine made her feel comfortable stripping down
In 2015, Robyn Lawley was the first plus-sized model to grace the pages of the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue.
Since that original spread, which Lawley shot when she was pregnant, the Australian model has appeared in the magazine three additional times. At the magazine's 60th Anniversary launch party last week, Lawley praised the brand for its inclusivity and helping her feel good in her own skin.
"They don’t care about stretch marks, they don’t care about cellulite," she told Page Six of the brand. "And that's really encompassing to me and really helps me love my body for what it is."
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"I think they're really body positive, and I've loved my body since shooting with them," she said.
"My body image - I've had a baby. I was pregnant my first issue. It had to come back for the next year…I was recovering [from] like childbirth and pregnancy. So my body has [gone in waves] with body love and positivity," she admitted.
Take one glance at Lawley's social media, and you'll see more of her thoughts on body positivity. She is an advocate for posting unedited photos. She is also a critic of how artificial intelligence is being used in the beauty space and how it is helping to create unattainable expectations for women.
In an op-ed written for Missing Perspectives last year, Lawley condemned the recent surge in AI.
"Since I first started my career, I have witnessed the rise of digital editing. As a model, I’ve been made to look skinnier, bigger, younger, older, shorter, and taller. I’ve had items digitally removed from my body, or digitally placed onto my body. I’ve witnessed the scenery go from a London studio to the Bahamas, all via digital editing," she wrote.
"I’ve been truly disturbed and completely transparent throughout my career about the amount of digital editing occurring without my permission or knowledge, and I have written numerous articles about the issue. Why is it so important? Because these images are used to sell fashion and products to real-life women like me. As a mother of a daughter, the idea that she will be comparing herself to images of women and girls who don’t exist is absolutely terrifying to me."
"I have always been open about what goes on behind the scenes so women know how my images are made and don’t try to compare themselves to Photoshop… but at least I’m a real person and can speak about these problems. An AI female-shaped render cannot speak for herself. Her voice, if she has one, is programmed by the men, rarely women, who made her. I urge you to deeply contemplate the gravity of that and the repercussions for all of us, but particularly women who have fought so hard, for so long for our voices to be heard."