Ines Rau, a French transgender model, has made history by becoming Playboy’s first transgender Playmate. Rau appears in the magazine’s coveted centrefold spot in the first issue since its founder Hugh Hefner died.
The November/ December issue of the widely popular magazine is a 100-page tribute to Hugh, who was an advocate for LGBT issues. To pay tribute to the infamous founder, this is the first time an issue of Playboy featured a man on its cover without a woman.
Photographed by Derek Kettela, the 26-year-old model dons a white bra and matching lace panties for the spread — posing with white socks and sneakers in front of a bright red background. Rau, who is no stranger to the modelling world, previously appeared in Vogue Italia and starred in a Balmain campaign in her short career. She also worked for Playboy and posed nude for the magazine’s May 2014 “A-Z Issue,” in a spread titled “Evolution.” The issue addressed humanity’s shift towards accepting gender identities beyond the male-female binary.
Tagging the opportunity as a turning point of her life in the accompanying interview, Rau said: “When I was doing this shoot, I was thinking of all those hard days in my childhood. Nudity means a lot to me since I went through a transition to get to where I want to be.
“And now, everything happening gives me so much joy and happiness. I thought, ‘Am I really going to be a Playmate—me?’ It’s the most beautiful compliment I’ve ever received. It’s like getting a giant bouquet of roses.”
A Playmate is a model who appears on the centrefold of the magazine as its Playmate of the month.
However, Ines is not the first transgender model to feature in the magazine. According to BBC, transgender actress Caroline “Tula” Cossey was photographed in Playboy to promote the Bond film “For Your Eyes Only” back in 1981, but it was not known to the public that she was a transgender at the time.
Thursday, April 25, 2024
