“If God wanted me to be black, I’d be black. If God wanted me to be white, I’d be white. But he chose for me to be both and original. So I guess that’s the way I’m supposed to be.”  These are the words spoken by model Winnie Harlow, that first inspired portrait artist Nicole Troup to feature Winnie in her new painting campaign titled "Vitiligo Beauty."  

Winnie is such a positive role model in the Vitiligo community, so Nicole wanted to create an image that would focus on confidence and being comfortable in your own skin. The goal of the art was to inspire community, encouragement and a body positive feeling that results in a sense of comfort from knowing that there are others just like you.

In order to spread this positive message to wider audience, the artist collaborated with the Vitiligo Research Foundation to run a campaign in December 2018 in order to raise money and awareness for the skin condition. Each print of the "Vitiligo Beauty" painting sold benefitted the foundation. Not only did the campaign raise money, but it elicited a positive conversation among the community. Many people gave encouraging feedback saying that the "painting and campaign made them feel more comfortable and beautiful in their own skin". Others said that they were happy to buy the print and hang on their wall as a daily reminder to find confidence and self-acceptance in their own skin".

The campaign ended in December 2018, but the prints are still available for purchase on Nicole Troup's website. This print makes an encouraging gift for anyone struggling to be confident in their physical appearance and offers hope that you can still have a voice and make powerful impact despite your appearance.

We look forward to doing other projects with Nicole in the future!