Held at the end of Milan Fashion Week in September, the Fendace show was in the news for a number of reasons: the Fendi designers, Kim Jones and Silvia Fendi, had created their version of Versace, and Donatella Versace had her Fendi done; it was the first time that two brands from different luxury groups had been released into the other’s archives; and the runway was flush with former supermodels including Kristin McMenamy, Naomi Campbell, Amber Valletta, Kate Moss and Gigi Hadid.
But perhaps the most notable aspect of the show was arguably one of its smallest: a tubeless white pump visible on the left thigh of Lila Grace Moss Hack, a 19-year-old model who shone on the runway in a gold-and-white Fendi x Versace swimsuit, high cut on the thigh, and a jacket with Greek keys.
An omnipod glucose pump used to treat type 1 diabetes (T1D), an autoimmune disease that can be diagnosed at any age — my daughter was diagnosed when she was 8 — that I couldn’t possibly afford to miss. His appearance on the catwalk, highlighting an often invisible condition, was another step in the definition of inclusivity in fashion.
While the last full fashion season, earlier this fall, was arguably the most inclusive in terms of race, age, size and gender, models with disabilities remain underrepresented and underexposed, according to The Fashion Spot, a trend forecasting site.
Laura Winson is the director of Zebedee Management, a modeling agency founded in 2017 to represent disabled and visually different models. “Before Zebedee, disability was not included in the diversity debate,” she said. “Only 0.02 percent of the people who appeared in fashion advertisements had a disability.”
The image of Ms. Moss Hack with her pump at Fendace quickly circulated among the T1D community — according to JDRF, an organization that funds T1D research, there are approximately 1.6 million Americans who have it — and caused a flow of supportive messages. Melany Gray posted to Ms. Moss Hack’s Instagram feed, “The entire T1D community greets you!” Angie Martin wrote, “I love showing my 11-year-old T1D daughter your photo.” And Eliska Pole simply posted, “Thank you for wearing your insulin pump so proudly.”
While Ms. Moss Hack declined to comment on her decision to go public with her pump, she was the only model on the Fendace show to wear a revealing swimsuit, and given the scrutiny of each model on a runway, it’s hard to believe the choice was an accident.
That was especially true when a scavenger hunt through more than 30 magazine covers, features, and runway snaps with Ms. Moss Hack and two other models, Stephanie Bambi Northwood-Blyth and Grace Clover, who also have T1D and wear glucose pumps, failed to reveal any pumps or other glucose monitoring equipment. Whether they were deleted, hidden, or wiped out was unclear, but there’s no denying that they were erased either.
Ms. Northwood-Blyth, a 30-year-old Australian-born model, has walked the runway for Balenciaga and Chanel and was the face of Calvin Klein CK One. A T1D attorney who has modeled since she was 14 and received her T1D diagnosis at age 12, said that while she has found support in the industry, she has sometimes chosen to remove her glucose meter on the job.
“It was always my choice because there are days when I want to talk about diabetes, but there are days when I would or when I don’t have that one-line explanation to hand,” Ms. Northwood-Blyth said.
Ms. Clover, 19, was diagnosed with T1D at age 14, two years before she started modeling and walked the runway for Dior, JW Anderson, Prada, Ferragamo and Fendi. She wasn’t sure if she was ever asked to remove her pump on set.
“I feel like I went on one occasion, but it was because I asked if it was going to be a problem, because it would show in the look,” she said, adding: “I totally get that. can be photoshopped later.”
Like the pump worn by Ms. Moss Hack, constant glucose meters (CGMs) or blood glucose meters (BGMs) help reduce the need for fingersticks or insulin injections and provide better blood sugar control, especially for people with T1D.
As visual indicators of T1D, these devices open lines of communication and improve understanding of T1D in humans.
“Seeing Lila wear her pump reminded me that I had reverted to the practical need to communicate with people, rather than share my experience more openly,” said Ms. Clover, who now carries her CGM for all her modeling work.
“I hope others out there can see Grace as a role model and feel reassured that they too can achieve whatever they want,” said Levi Asher, associate director of development at IMG Models.
For Irish author and disability activist Sinead Burke, who has achondroplasia, a genetic condition that is the most common form of dwarfism, seeing disabled models on the runway is important because, she said, “fashion touches everyone because we all have to wear clothes. It’s almost universal.”
That Ms. Moss Hack may not have realized that wearing her visible glucose pump on the runway “would be a big deal,” Ms. Burke said, “is a success in itself.”