Christian Wilkins | |
|---|---|
 Christian Wilkins, 2014 | |
| Born | 25 April 1995 |
| Occupations |
|
| Years active | 2013−present |
| Known for | challenging gender norms with his unique effeminate and non-binary style |
| Television | |
| Father | Richard Wilkins |
Christian Wilkins (born 25 April 1995) is an Australian model and actor, best known for his clothing style which challenges gender stereotypes and norms. [2] [3] [4]
Returning from Schoolies week after graduating from high school in 2013, Wilkins attended the ARIA Music Awards of 2013 in an outfit which he has referred to as his biggest fashion faux-pas. [5]
In 2014, a gossip columnist in The Daily Telegraph described Wilkins' outfits as "garish" and his style as "eccentric". [6] She also suggested Wilkins' only way to find any fame comparable to that of his well known father would be to audition for reality shows such as Big Brother or My Kitchen Rules . [6]
In 2016, Wilkins was working with the Nine Network's senior stylist Kara Wilson on Nine's Instagram account @Channel9Style. [7]
Wilkins appeared on the three-part SBS Television documentary series Filthy Rich and Homeless in 2017 where he was one of five wealthy people to be documented living amongst Melbourne's homeless community for ten days. [8] [9]
In 2018, he began hosting a podcast for PodcastOne with Andy Kelly called Radical Fashionism. [10]
In early 2020, Wilkins was announced as one of the competitors on Network 10's Dancing with the Stars , the show's 17th season. [11] Wilkins made it to the grand final where he placed as the runner-up behind series winner Celia Pacquola. [12] The series aired during the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in Australia and Wilkins was forced into isolation with his dance partner Lily Cornish after his father contracted COVID-19 after interacting with American actress Rita Wilson, who along with her husband Tom Hanks, had tested positive for COVID-19. [13] [14]
Following his time on Dancing with the Stars, Wilkins made his acting debut in the Stan series Eden which was filmed in 2020 and began streaming in June 2021. [15] [16] [17]
Wilkins co-hosted the red carpet fashion at the 2022 ARIA Music Awards alongside his father Richard Wilkins and comedian Lucinda "Froomes" Price. [18]
In February 2023, Wilkins modelled at the Australian fashion label Romance Was Born's runway show called "Stronger Together", as well as at a WorldPride event hosted by Jean Paul Gaultier. [19] [20]
Throughout his career to date, Wilkins has been an ambassador for the Perth Fashion Festival, Wayside Chapel, the Victorian Racing Club, Pantene and Karen Murrell lipsticks. [21] [22] [23] [24] [25]
Wilkins has developed a unique non-binary style which has seen him challenge gender stereotypes by modeling outfits not traditionally worn by male models. At the Logie Awards of 2022, Wilkins wore a floor-length backless gown. Wilkins' decision to wear the dress prompted many social media users to abuse him. [26] Speaking about the online abuse he received, Wilkins said: "I got a lot of DMs... People telling me to overdose, people telling me to die. I respect that you're allowed to have your opinions … but the hate was quite intense. That level of abuse is completely unacceptable." [4]
Discussing his style in Body+Soul in 2022, Mary Madigan wrote that Wilkins "effortlessly blends textiles, fabrics, and colors. He creates trends or elevates them instead of just following them. His sheer dress at the Logies was a modern twist on 1950s glamor, and I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but it has been everywhere since." [27] Madigan also bemoaned the fact that if he was a cis woman, Wilkins may be considered a fashion icon, rather than facing accusations of attention seeking, writing: "I’m so annoyed that he isn’t getting the fashion accolades he deserves because I’m certain things would be different if he was a straight woman" she wrote. [27]
In February 2022, Wilkins criticized The Daily Mail for a headline about the outfit he wore on the opening day of the Sydney Mardi Gras Festival, which he described as "completely homophobic and misgynistic". [28] The Daily Mail had headlined an article with "Dude looks like a lady! Richard Wilkins' flamboyant son Christian flaunts his VERY toned figure in a skintight pink mini dress with daring cut-outs", referencing Aerosmith's 1987 song "Dude (Looks Like a Lady)". [28]
Wilkins is the son of Michelle Burke and television personality Richard Wilkins. [15] His parents divorced when he was one. [15] His maternal grandmother is Greek. [15]
He attended Anglican Church secondary school, Redlands, Cremorne. [15]
Wilkins is gay. [29] [30] Despite becoming known for a non-binary fashion style, Wilkins identifies as male and uses male gender pronouns. [31]
Costume is the distinctive style of dress and/or makeup of an individual or group that reflects class, gender, occupation, ethnicity, nationality, activity or epoch—in short, culture.
White tie, also called full evening dress or a dress suit, is the most formal evening Western dress code. For men, it consists of a black tail coat worn over a white dress shirt with a starched or piqué bib, white piqué waistcoat and the white bow tie worn around a standing wing collar. Mid or high-waisted black trousers with galon, a braid of trim consisting of two silk stripes to conceal the outer seams of the trousers, along with court shoes complete the outfit. Orders, decorations and medals may be worn. Acceptable accessories include a black top hat, white gloves, a white scarf, a pocket watch, a white pocket square, and a boutonnière. Women wear full-length ball or evening gowns with evening gloves and, optionally, tiaras, jewellery, and a small handbag.
The holiday of Mardi Gras is celebrated in southern Louisiana, including the city of New Orleans. Celebrations are concentrated for about two weeks before and through Shrove Tuesday, the day before Ash Wednesday. Mardi Gras is French for Fat Tuesday, the season is known as Carnival and begins on 12th Night, January 6th, and extends until midnight before Ash Wednesday. Club, or Krewe, balls start soon after, though most are extremely private, with their Kings and Queens coming from wealthy old families and their courts consisting of the season's debutantes. Most of the high society Krewes do not stage parades. As Fat Tuesday gets nearer, the parades start in earnest. Usually there is one major parade each day ; many days have several large parades. The largest and most elaborate parades take place the last five days of the Mardi Gras season. In the final week, many events occur throughout New Orleans and surrounding communities, including parades and balls.
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The culture of Haiti is a creolized blend of African, European and Taino elements due to the French colonization of Amerindian land, in conjunction with the large diverse enslaved African population who had later freed themselves by a successful revolt. These attributions have largely influenced the art, cuisine, literature, music, religion as well as the languages of Haiti.
Pierre Alexandre Claudius Balmain was a French fashion designer and founder of leading post-war fashion house Balmain. Known for sophistication and elegance, he described the art of dressmaking as "the architecture of movement".
A jazz funeral is a funeral procession accompanied by a brass band, in the tradition of New Orleans, Louisiana.
Richard Stephen Wilkins is a New Zealand–born Australian television and radio presenter. He is the entertainment editor for the Nine Network and weekend announcer on smoothfm.
The NAISDA Dance College is a performing arts training college based in Kariong, New South Wales for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in Australia. It was established as the Aboriginal Islander Skills Development Scheme (AISDS) in 1975, which became the National Aboriginal and Islander Skills Development Association (NAISDA) in 1988. The date of establishment of the college is usually cited as 1976, although some sources report it as 1975.
The Courir de Mardi Gras is a traditional Mardi Gras event held in many Cajun and Creole communities of French Louisiana on the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday. Courir de Mardi Gras is Louisiana French for "Fat Tuesday Run". This rural Mardi Gras celebration is based on early begging rituals, similar to those still celebrated by mummers, wassailers, and celebrants of Halloween. As Mardi Gras is the celebration of the final day before Lent, celebrants drink and eat heavily, dressing in specialized costumes, ostensibly to protect their identities. In Acadiana, popular practices include wearing masks and costumes, overturning social conventions, dancing, drinking alcohol, begging, trail riding, feasting, and whipping. Mardi Gras is one of the few occasions when people are allowed to publicly wear masks in Louisiana. Dance for a Chicken: The Cajun Mardi Gras, a documentary by filmmaker Pat Mire, provides insight into the history and evolution of this cultural tradition. In popular culture, two HBO series also make reference to the tradition.
The Dress of the Year is an annual fashion award run by the Fashion Museum, Bath since 1963. Each year since 1963, the Museum has asked a fashion journalist to select a dress or outfit that best represents the most important new ideas in contemporary fashion. For 2010 the Museum broke with tradition by asking the milliner Stephen Jones, rather than a journalist, to choose an outfit; and again in 2014 when the fashion blogger, Susanna Lau of Style Bubble, was asked to choose an outfit for 2013. The outfit is then donated to the Fashion Museum along with an Adel Rootstein mannequin to represent that year's total look.
Mardi Gras Massacre is a 1978 American slasher film written and directed by Jack Weis. The film's plot follows a serial killer roaming the streets of New Orleans, Louisiana, sacrificing women to an Aztec goddess. It has been noted for its plot similarities to the 1963 film Blood Feast.
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Indya Adrianna Moore is an American actor and model. They are known for playing the role of Angel Evangelista in the FX television series Pose. Time named them one of the 100 most influential people in the world in 2019. Moore is transgender and non-binary, and uses they/them and she/her pronouns.
Riot is an Australian drama television film that aired on ABC and ABC iview on February 25, 2018. The film is directed by Jeffrey Walker from a screenplay by Greg Waters and a story by Carrie Anderson. It stars Damon Herriman, Kate Box, Xavier Samuel, Jessica De Gouw, and Josh Quong Tart. It takes a look at the 1970s LGBT rights movement in Australia through the eyes of dedicated activist Lance Gowland.
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As a born and raised Sydneysider, I can't imagine a world without the Mardi Gras.
Also starring on the show will be Christian Wilkins, the socialite son of Channel 9 entertainment reporter Richard Wilkins.
...says Christian, who has just finished filming in Byron Bay for his debut acting role in a new series, Eden, on Stan
Eden is available to stream on Stan from 11 June
Red Carpet: Richard Wilkins, Christian Wilkins, Lucinda 'Froomes' Price...
I do get asked about pronouns a lot. I think that all gender is non-binary, and at no point do I look at myself and I'm like, 'I'm a man.' But he/him still just does resonate with me more than they/them... I'd say that I'm non-binary, but I also still very much see myself in he/him pronouns.