There is an important message behind this trans model’s dress made of 72 flags
A transgender model is making a serious political statement with the beautiful dress she is wearing in her latest shoot.
Valentijn De Hingh posted a photo of the shoot with the dress on her Instagram page.
It is made up of the flags of the 72 countries which have explicit anti-LGBT laws limiting the expression of gender identity or sexual orientation.
The dress was photographed by Pieter Henket, who says that the idea behind the dress, designed by Mattijs van Bergen, came amid preparations for EuroPride.
The event, which took place in Amsterdam, saw the 72 flags presented during the opening ceremony to show that much work still needs to be done in order to achieve LGBT equality.
After van Bergen created the dress, which visualizes the plight of some LGBT people around the world, Henket was asked to take the photographs of De Hingh.
The model was the first to sign with IMG Models, and was later asked to be the trans ambassador for EuroPride.
“And where [better] to do that than in front of one of the most beautiful paintings in the world, ‘The Night Watch,’ by Rembrandt,” Henket wrote on Instagram.
De Hingh wrote on Instagram that the aim of the project is to see the number of flags incorporated into the dress go from 72 down to just one – a rainbow flag.
“That little lady wearing the big dress is me,” De Hingh wrote.
“Every country that changes its legislation will have its flag replaced by a rainbow flag. Let’s hope this dress will represent a patchwork of rainbows sooner rather than later!”
