The tagline of the video goes: "Because who is perfect? Get closer."
Pro Infirmis, a Swiss charity, has defied the fashion industry's idea of perfection by providing disabled mannequins that encourage everyone "to reflect on the acceptance of people with disabilities."
Their campaign for the International Day of Persons with Disabilities, which was captured in a short film by Alain Gsponer, has gone viral on the internet with more than three million page views and 16,000 likes on YouTube, showing that people with scoliosis, shortened limbs, and a deformed spine can also be fashion forward.
Five fashion houses in Zurich Bahnhofstrasse have replaced modelesque, pneumatically-correct mannequins with disabled mannequins on their window displays since its launch on December 3, where clothes from their latest collection are altered to fit the body type.
"We often chase after ideals, instead of life in all its diversity to accept," said Mark Zumbühl, executive board member of Pro Infirmis the action, in a press release. "Pro Infirmis is particularly committed to the acceptance of disability and the inclusion of people with disabilities."
The viral video, with almost two thousand comments, touched the hearts of netizens around the world. Many said that their campaign was "moving" and that it made them realize that beauty is for everyone.
According to Youtube user zQuestionsleep, "Beautiful video and project. Am I the only one who wants to hear more from the people in the video? I would love to learn more about them all."
"THIS will make you think again about beauty and body image. Watch the reactions as a group of people with severe disabilities and deformities become artist models for a compassionate and gentle German artist, who creates beautiful mannequins in their image," stated Joyce Donahue on YouTube.
Furthermore, the mannequins are the actual measurements of Miss Handicap 2010 Jasmine Rechsteiner, radio host and film critic Alex Oberholzer, Athlete Urs Kolly, blogger Nadja Schmid, and actor Erwin Aljuki.
"I have tears in my eyes. I always believed that beauty, as well as fashion, is for EVERYBODY! This is just perfect," said Lela Personal in a YouTube comment. — KDM, GMA News
source: gmanetwork.com
