Dara Allen Breaks Fashion Mold As Model-Stylist in WSJ Magazine May 2021

Model/stylist Dara Allen is lensed by Bryan Liston [IG] in ‘Beach Ready’ for WSJ Magazine May 2021./ Hair by Kevin Ryan; makeup by Mark Carrasquillo

AOC has a policy of not identifying trans models unless they incorporate that reality into their interviews. In the case of Dara Allen, her close relationships with photographer Ethan James Green, as well as Marc Jacobs and Hari Nef give clues. But not until Allen speaks directly to the topic with WSJ’s Mikelle Street, will AOC quote her.

It’s important to the San Diego native, that Allen is allowed to be a model first and a trans model second. Knowing how strongly curvy models want to just be models, we assume that many trans models share the same sentiment.

Dara Allen on being a trans model:

“If you look back at the history, there have been models [who] have been openly trans or not openly trans and that has just been a part of fashion—I’m not discounting that,” she says. This includes models such as April Ashley, who was not publicly known to be trans when she appeared in a 1960 David Bailey shoot in British Vogue, and Teri Toye, an out trans woman who appeared in Chanel fashion shows and was shot by Steven Meisel in the ’80s. “But in the particular time period I was starting in,” says Allen, “it was very much expected that if you were not in ‘the mold’ then you would have to sort of justify your place by becoming a mouthpiece for activism.” And while Allen appreciates the importance of that work, she wanted to join an agency that was going to allow her to simply model.