Tess Holliday Covers People’s Body Issue

Tess Holliday made headlines earlier this year when she signed a contract with Milk Modeling agency — the first woman that wears a size 22 to land a contract with a major agency. In March, she starred in a campaign for plus-size clothing brand Torrid without getting photoshopped, and now she’s landed her very first major magazine cover — People magazine’s body issue.

people cover tess

However, it’s taken more than a decade for Holliday to break into the mainstream world.

Nobody was interested, she told People. I got one call back and they said, ˜Look, you have  a pretty face, but you’re too short and you’re too big.’

At 5’5, the 29-year-old tatted-up mom certainly doesn’t fit into the mould placed on plus-size models. Most are at least 5’8 in height and are a size 8 to 16.

In the magazine, Holliday dons a lace bodysuit by Chubby Cartwheels paired with platform heels — an outfit she strategically chose herself.

I think if someone doesn’t look at an image and feel something, you haven’t done your job, she said. Whether it’s negative or positive, it should evoke something in them. There is no way to be a woman, or to be beautiful. We all deserve a place. I believe this with all my heart. While modeling is my career and my family is vitally important to me, I have this passion inside of me to help other women feel confident and comfortable in their bodies, regardless of their size or what society tells them is beautiful. It’s like a calling.

Holliday also tells the magazine about being bullied as a kid in Mississippi, which led her to dropping out of high school. She eventually got her GED, moved to Seattle and began working as a hair and makeup artist for fashion shows. A few years later, she headed to LA to pursue modeling.

Check out Holliday at her shoot for People magazine in the video below!

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