INSTYLE May-June 2019

ANDREJA
MARKING A REVOLUTION IN MODELLING,
ANDREJA PEJIĆ CAME OUT AS
TRANSGENDER IN 2013, RE-IMAGINING
THE MEANING OF ANDROGYNY AND
FEATURING IN LEADING GLOBAL
CAMPAIGNS AND COVERS. SHE’S NOW
TURNED HER HEAD TO THE LUXURY
HAIR REALM AS AN AMBASSADOR
FOR KÉRASTASE, WRITES CAMERON PINE.
MAKING A STATEMENT by going blonde from the young age
of 14, Andreja’s affinity with hair is instinctively individual,
aligning perfectly with the Kérastase mission – to be able
to bring out the beauty in every client’s hair with the new
Blond Absolu range.
Announced over an intimate white-washed lunch
with hints of purple at Sydney’s chic La Porte Space,
Andreja made a guest appearance for leading media while
sharing an up-close and personal interview with L’Oréal
Communications Manager, Christine Burke.
Shaking up the perceptions of beauty and empowering
others to not feel alone, Andreja’s role in the modelling,
beauty and fashion (and now acting) worlds feels like it
is something she has achieved both intentionally and
unintentionally.
“I have been fortunate to do a lot of interesting things and
have met a lot of amazing people but I really did feel like I
was misunderstood in a number of ways – people didn’t
always know where to place me and how to react. I did at
times feel like an outsider,” Andreja said.
In an exclusive interview with INSTYLE, Andreja’s
approachable nature and genuine personality truly came to
the fore, making her arguably one of the most heartfelt and
humble globally recognised models. Overcoming challenges
and unnecessary labels from the media has been all part of
her journey to acceptance and it’s the move into acting roles
that has helped her focus on her own personal growth as
a priority.
Andreja was initially widely recognised for modelling
both masculine and feminine clothing, walking both men’s
and women’s shows for ground breaking Jean Paul Gaultier.
She then became the first transgender model profiled by
Vogue Italy in May 2015, as well as being the first trans
woman to sign a cosmetics contract.
For Andreja, beauty starts on the inside. “If you haven’t
worked on yourself and your insecurities to be a better
person, it’s all for nothing. It’s important to work on both
your internal and external beauty,” Andreja said.Aligning
with Kerastase values and their aim to garner traction with
younger dynamic individuals, is just one part of the process.
“Empowerment to me is meditating and taking time
away from talking to people who are unnecessary for my
personality. I think in a lot of ways that we are living in a
very shallow time – with a lack of ideas, vision and mental
health issues. We need to ensure we look beyond the
surface,” she said.
Moving to Melbourne at the age of five from Bosnia,
Andreja’s mother had to sell canned food in the market
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and went through a lot of
hardship just to be able to
afford what she needed for her
two children (including Igor,
Andreja’s older brother). In
a way, Andreja feels she was
driven to be successful, not
just from the unconditional love from her family but also because more than
anything her mum made self-sacrifices for her children to come to Australia
and be part of an upper to middle-class society and have a better life. Still
very close to her mother, Andreja sat alongside her at lunch, sharing a very
special bond built on strength, integrity and unconditional support.
“My blonde makes me feel confident and empowered to be uniquely
myself. Sometimes blonde comes with a stereotype, as does beauty, however
it is exciting to be living in a time where stereotypes are being broken down
and we can embrace diversity,” Andreja said.
Andrea has also turned an eye to acting, having featured in last year’s The
Girl in the Spider’s Web alongside Claire Foy, and is continuing classes in
38 INSTYLE