Vogue 's September issue featured eightmodels that represented the theme "Generation America."- One of the models chosen was Ariel Nicholson, the first openly transgender star on the cover.
- "I've been put in this box - trans model," she said. "Which is what I am, but that's not all I am."
Ariel Nicholson is the first transgender model on the cover of $4.
The 20-year-old model $4 alongside Anok Yai, Bella Hadid, Lourdes "Lola" Leon, Sherry Shi, Yumi Nu, and Kaia Gerber as part of the September issue's "Generation America" theme, which was photographed by $4.
Nicholson was pictured wearing a bright-green sweater and polka-dot skirt by American designer Christopher John Rogers.
"Obviously it's a big deal being the first trans woman on the cover of Vogue," she said. "But it's also hard to say exactly what kind of big deal it is when the effects are so intangible."
Nicholson added that even though it's great to be the first trans woman on the cover, she doesn't like being labeled.
"I've been put in this box - trans model. Which is what I am, but that's not all I am," she said.
In the inside image, which was shot at Vogue's offices, Nicholson looks stunning while striking a pose in a sequined Rick Owens gown.
Nicholson is following in the footsteps of $4, who posed for the cover of $4 in 2017, and $4, who was the first trans woman to appear on the cover of $4.
Since she started modeling in high school, Nicholson has posed on the cover of Italian Vogue and walked the runways of designers like Miu Miu, Marc Jacobs, and Calvin Klein. Then-creative director of Calvin Klein, Raf Simons, handpicked Nicholson to be a part of the show, making her the first trans woman to walk for the American brand.
Representatives for Ariel Nicholson did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.