Encountering an albino, whose lack of skin and hair pigment gives him or her a bleached look, does not raise eyebrows anymore, but seeing twin albinos is still something of a rarity. More so, if the twins happen to be fashion model celebrities in their own right.
Meet Lara and Mara Bawar, the 11-year- old albino twins, born to black parents, that have taken the fashion industry by storm. Although their parents originally belonged to Guinea-Bissau (West Africa), these girls were born in São Paulo, Brazil.
The girls would have remained unknown entities had it not been for a Swiss photographer, Vinicius Terranova, a resident of São Paulo, who discovered the two in 2016. He was totally floored by their pale features that give them their striking appearance.
He took it upon himself to photograph the twins, along with their 13-year- old dark but charming sister named Sheila. He named his personal project as Flores Raras (Portuguese for ‘Rare Flowers’) and rightly so because what he shot was unprecedented in the history of fashion photography.
The twins with their sister received instant fame, as their photo shoot was lapped up by connoisseurs of fashion and big brands. In no time, the international brands, such as Nike, Insanis and Bazaar Kids, were vying with each other to sign them. Not only this, these gorgeous kids have over six thousand fans on Instagram, who follow their every move eagerly.
An upbeat Vinicius says about his project, “My art represents the beauty in diversity and both the literal and symbolic extensions of empowerment.”
The albino twins too are delighted by this new-found fame. Lara told the Brazilian media, “We feel albinism is pretty, we love our hair, eye color, and skin tone.” Mara added, “Growing up like this was amazing, we love being different and are happy with our unique beauty.”
That these albino twins have places to go in the fashion industry is a foregone conclusion. Watch this space for their future fashion exploits.
