Lthe first time I met in person Lea Cerezo, better known by her stage name Lea T, it was on the occasion of a shooting for Style Magazine last autumn. I had selected a series of men’s clothes, jacket and trousers; certainly not a new look for a woman. From the 1940s until then, trousers were only a male legacy, we began to see them worn by divas of the caliber of Dietrich and Garbo, and not without causing scandal. From the following decade onwards, thanks precisely to the allure of entertainment celebrities, the narrative of the imagination of women’s fashion changed rapidly and radically until it reached today where the jacket-trouser suit or separates for women is customary.
The same cannot (yet) be said for the menskirt (men’s skirt, ed.), but that’s another matter. Almost a year later, Lea accepted my invitation to participate in a talk during the three days of the tenth year of life of “Il Tempo delle Donne”, on 9 September, whose main theme of the 2023 edition was “Freedom”. The title of our panel: “Freedom and Representation. Bodies and identities in fashion and communication”.
Why is it important that all people belonging to so-called minorities are represented in fashion communication (and not only)?
It is (would be…) a fundamental step: when all identities will have a face and become “real”, when we will be able to think in terms of humanity and not according to an absurd numerical criterion which establishes that “normality” is determined by a percentage, then we will have reached an equilibrium. Even in everyday life, for example in a fashion advertisement or in a television commercial, the participation of a plurality of different bodies, realities and experiences is important: for us, it strengthens self-awareness, and for all other people to understand who we are. And above all that we are here. While today, for us, it still is impossible to be reflected in the imagination imposed by a social model that excludes us.
At the same time, the discourse of representation can turn into a trap. Too often we see people take on the burden of an entire community and thus lose their individuality. I cannot express myself for an entire community, also because it would be supremacist behavior, but I can talk about myself and my experiences. Always remembering that mine is a collective singularity.
Fashion, as often happens, has anticipated other creative fields in the representation of everyone, but much more can still be done. As?
Much more can and must be done, I still notice discriminatory behavior even in fashion, the road is still long. Today, at 41, I have realized that the fashion environment has created tears and traumas for me; there is too much lack of respect towards my body: because, you see, there is the belief that the body of a transsexual woman can be used at will, that is, that it can be exploited. I like to say that we were like hackers who cracked a mechanism: fashion did not open the doors for us, as many people believe. And in any case, resistance is always there, in all areas. What to do? We should start from the system: it is not possible to change the mentality of the fashion world as if it were not part of it.
Lea T. RICK OWENS LUXOR F/W2023 recycled cashmere dress and culottes, ISABEL MARANT leather thigh-high boots. photo by Andrea Gandini – styling Alessandra Corvasce
Fashion is often trivialized and even mocked. In your opinion, is there a risk that when the protagonist of a fashion brand’s campaign is not a cisgender person, the message will arrive in the wrong way? As an inappropriate provocation (if not worse)?
The risk of generating a violent reaction exists for all identities that are not represented among the people who manage power, that is, men, straight, white, cis (person whose gender identity coincides with the gender assigned at birth, ed.). The first step, a necessary step if it is true that we are all the same, would be to make use of teams that do not only have these characteristics so that the message – be it the fashion system, the political system, or any type of system – is elaborated by those who actually live that reality. Plurality is essential even behind the scenes to make those spaces more real and safe and to transmit more realistic information.
What is your experience of representation as a trans woman in your modeling work?
As I said before, I find this term a bit of a trap, but I have happened to receive letters from people who identified with my story and in some episodes of my life. Or knowing about girls who work as models today and who started after seeing me work, especially Brazilian girls.
Thinking about the larger segment of Italian men and women: does the representation of a trans person cause more discomfort for the cis male or female population?
The discomfort exists when cis people deny acknowledging their privileges or responsibilities. There is a historical debt to the trans community. And it is an unpayable debt, like that towards people of Afro-descendants.
How does the Italian feminist movement position itself towards trans women?
It depends on what feminism we are talking about. There are different thoughts. In Italy, for example, there is a feminist movement that excludes us, that wages war on us.
Why?
Because he believes that we do not have the same rights as them. However, I don’t believe in the figure of a universal woman, rather I would say that there are women with different realities and needs and that they often meet. But sometimes not.
What relationship did you have with your body during childhood?
Conflicting, of course. I didn’t realize how much she could give me and teach me. It would have been nice if, as a child, I had been aware of how important one’s individuality is for our existential path. Over the years I have discovered a fluid body full of possibilities.
In your opinion, are the families of today’s boys and girls more informed and therefore more useful for their daughters and sons than when you were born?
It depends on the country, the political situation, etc… I note with extreme concern a strong wave of the conservative right that talks about the “traditional family”, which certainly does not benefit social education. But there is also a strong movement that provides information, families who know the word respect and understand how precious it can be to grow up surrounded by many different realities.
How much, in this sense, and how has the situation improved (if it has improved)?
I’m starting to notice a certain interest from cis people in us and this can be positive. But the path ahead is not easy. Especially in Italy.
What are the things, attitudes, episodes that still disturb you the most today?
In general, I am disturbed by people’s lack of interest, when I perceive the total absence of the need to know, to inform themselves: in other words, not realizing the weight (and importance) of their responsibilities towards society.
What would you like to tell us, something you’ve never said before…
That I no longer want to feel uncomfortable in saying that I want to live peacefully, with a good bank account. I don’t want to be ashamed of saying that I need money.
Why, were you ashamed of this?
A little yes and do you know why? Because many people refuse to give work to a trans woman. It’s a shame that we also need to earn a living. Or should trans women remain trapped ad aeternum in the “Brazilian prostitute” stereotype?
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