Indigenous Australian model Charlee Fraser has said her big win at the Australian Fashion Laureate Awards this week represents the industryās progress towards greater diversity and representation.
The 23-year-old was nominated for the Model Of The Year award alongside Sudanese Australian Duckie Thot, body diversity advocate Robyn Lawley and fellow model Julia Nobis. On Wednesday she claimed victory at an exclusive lunch in Sydney, and said āthis award means everything to meā.
āI feel insanely honoured to have been nominated alongside some of Australiaās most iconic and diverse women,ā Charlee told HuffPost Australia. āItās great to physically see the fashion industry change in such positive ways.ā
After being scouted back in 2013 at age 18, the modelās career took off internationally when she made her New York Fashion Week debut in 2016. However, modelling wasnāt always her first career choice, as sheād initially hoped to study business and beauty after high school.
Charlee, whose Indigenous mother is an Awabakal woman from New South Wales, said her heritage has helped shape many personal and professional decisions.
āWhen I was younger, I had many different ambitions, none of which involved fashion but all of which involved creativity, business or the environment, which is currently Iām doing,ā she said.
āIdentifying with my Aboriginality has highly influenced my direction in life. Having no direct source of information on our history, traditions, way of life, etc. has led me down a path of self-discovery and a journey of obtaining knowledge. Watch this space.ā
Charleeās hope is that greater representation in the fashion industry will create a great impact on the future of modelling.
āItās really quite largely important for me to see/experience these changes, not only because Iām a woman of ethnicity myself, but because our generation now is the next generationsā history,ā she said. āThe changes we make/implement today will hopefully create a more peaceful and understanding future.ā