A modeling agency in Egypt is 'decolonizing beauty standards'

Iman Eldeeb’s agency is progressively creating new ground for Egypt’s fashion sector by hiring a varied line-up of models, in between the frantic rush of wardrobe changes and photographers preparing for shoots.

Eldeeb, a curly-haired model with a slim body, developed an international career in Milan, where photographers informed her she was “the first Egyptian model they had ever seen.”

She returned to Egypt in 2018 after a seven-year absence and set about shaking up a fashion scene dominated by outmoded clichés.

Modeling has long been dominated in the Arab world’s most populated country by “girls from Eastern Europe, with pale complexions,” according to Eldeeb.

Such “obsolete” standards, according to the 28-year-old, have made it impossible for Egyptian and Arab models to get into the market.

“The appearance and shape of a face, for example, are not limiting factors in beauty. This, I believe, is a beauty misunderstanding” AFP spoke with Eldeeb.

“Hair color, eye color, all of these characteristics were part of a very old idea of beauty, and we’re trying to get away from it as much as possible.”

According to The Fashion Spot, an industry website, “models of color” made up more than 43 percent of those on worldwide catwalks in autumn 2021, making it “the most ethnically diverse season on record.”

Eldeeb said she noticed a new trend of more different features and bodies appearing while traveling the world as a model.

She and her sister Yousra returned to Egypt and formed UNN Model Management, which means “rebirth” in the black Nubian language.

The agency provides a platform for Egypt’s rising stars who lack backing in a cutthroat market.

“The Arab world’s fashion sector is still evolving,” Eldeeb stated.

UNN now manages over 35 contracts with top brands like Louis Vuitton, Adidas, and Levi’s, making it a market leader in Egypt’s embryonic fashion industry.

Concerns about race

Mohsen Othman, popularly known as Lemosen, a freelance photographer who frequently collaborates with UNN, lauded the agency for its “brave” approach.

“We have creative people in Egypt, but we lack the resources, and training is outdated,” he said of the business.

UNN is a force for “decolonising beauty standards” and “deconstructing internalized racism,” according to Sabah Khodir, an Egyptian campaigner against gender-based violence.

“Being more visible in the media, on film, and elsewhere can help save lives. It makes you more human in the eyes of the rest of the world “According to Khodir, the situation for under-represented women is dire.

Adhar Makuac Abiem, a South Sudanese model, has long been subjected to racial taunts and insults in Cairo, Egypt’s busy city.

She never expected to be hired by a local agency when she arrived in Egypt as a refugee in 2014.

She stated she was frequently told she was “too black” or “too ugly” to get work.

However, the 21-year-old has been able to establish a career as a model with UNN since 2019.

According to Marie Grace Brown, a University of Kansas researcher who wrote a book about women’s attire in Sudan, Egypt is similar to “the West where stereotypes towards dark-skinned” individuals.

However, Abiem continues to strive to “become a positive role model” for young black women in the profession.

‘A type of treatment’

Mariam Abdallah, 22, who was busy fixing her hair before a picture session, said she has been modeling more abroad than in Egypt.

She told AFP, “We’re not interested in ‘exotic’ top models.”

Apart from overcoming discrimination in a highly predatory sector with high-profile incidents of sexual misbehavior, obtaining parental approval in a conservative Muslim country is another obstacle.

Three-quarters of parents are concerned that photographs of their model daughters would be “misused” online, according to Eldeeb.

Concerns have also been raised regarding young women wearing exposing clothing and working “inappropriate hours.”

“Parents always attempt to choose for the daughters,” she noted, regardless of their job.

According to the World Bank, less than 20% of Egyptian women had jobs in 2019.

Eldeeb, on the other hand, has been successful in obtaining work visas for several of her models in France, a first for home-grown talent.

Abdallah recently left Egypt for the first time, thanks to contracts with a dozen agencies in Europe and the United States, which have given her a sense of independence and purpose.

The emphasis on nurturing Egyptian talent for global design giants is much more than just good business for activist Khodir.