Challenging China’s body ideals is tough

Harmony Anne-Marie Ilunga, above left, 22, moved to Hong Kong as a refugee from the Democratic Republic of Congo and tried to pursue a modelling career.

In Hong Kong, she rarely saw anyone who looked like her in the magazines. Now she is trying to change that . But industry figures say Asia’s beauty and body ideals remain the same. Again and again, she saw that models there were expected to be “tall, light and skinny”. The same was true of mainland China. “I started lightening my skin, using lightening products... just so I could fit in ,” Ilunga said.

After rounds of rejections, in 2018 she opened her own small agency to champion models of all skin tones and sizes. “Representation matters so much,” she said . Ilunga’s agency now has 32 male and female models from places such as Rwanda, Burundi, Pakistan, India, Sri Lanka, Nepal and the Philippines. They have had some successes though changing attitudes is hard.

One of her most booked models is an 18-year-old Burundian. She said clients willing to look beyond white or Asian models were mostly not local brands and were trying to promote internationally.

Ilunga said she has found male black models are more sought after, but there is still resistance to black women.

Chinese consumers expect brands to conform to their standards, said Laurence Lim Dally of Cherry Blossoms Intercultural Branding, which helps international brands market to Chinese consumers. “Being fat is seen as selfneglect and the opposite to Confucius’ emphasis on self-improvement.”

But Ilunga has some optimism. “At least there is a conversation,” she said. –