In an interview with Revelist at the Faviana Oscar watch party, Alexiss shared why the industry needs to change the conversation to focus not on physical health, but on the mental health of curvier models. Alexiss said she spent “many sleepless, crying nights” after reading the comments when she first started in her career, but suddenly had an epiphany. “I really had to look myself in the mirror and think, am I cut out for this?” she said. Alexiss eventually found the answer to that by accepting her body and encouraging other women to do the same. With supermodel Ashley Graham breaking barriers in the plus-size industry, Alexiss views it as an opportunity for more body diversity within the modeling world. “I think the biggest thing… is that Ashley Graham has really just paved the way for all of us but the problem [is] that she’s doing so, so well that no one expects someone else to do as well as her,” she said. “We could all succeed together. I think that that’s something that we’re all trying to do collectively and I think we’re doing quite a great job. It’s 2018 and body positivity is all the rage.” This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.
