Madeline Stuart, Model with Down Syndrome, Lands Two New Contracts

Madeline Stuart is an 18-year-old model from Australia. The Brisbane-born Stuart landed two new jobs this week when she became the new face of American fitness brand Manifesta and label everMaya.

Courtesy everMaya

Stuart, who has Down syndrome, has chronicled her weight loss over the past 18 months on Instagram and Facebook (where she has 39,000 and 385,000 fans, respectively). She frequently writes about inclusion and acceptance on her pages, and she describes modeling as “a way to express myself when words don’t always come easy.”

“We are absolutely thrilled to work with a talent like Madeline on our newest national ad campaign,” Damian Graybelle, everMaya’s president, said in a statement. “All of us at everMaya feel very strongly about creating a brand that is rooted in a spirit of inclusion and providing opportunities for those who begin life with barriers to success.”

Courtesy Manifesta

“We hope to encourage people to expand their idea of what beautiful and healthy means,” Manifesta CEO Rachel Blumenfeld told Distractify. “We want people to realize that they have something valuable and worth sharing no matter what their size, shape, color, or ability.”

Earlier this year, American Horror Story actress Jamie Brewer made history by becoming the first model with Down syndrome to walk during New York Fashion Week. “If we put our hearts into it,” Brewer told PEOPLE, “the fashion industry, any industry — our lives will be changed in the process and the world will be changed as well.”

RELATED VIDEO: Model with Down Syndrome Makes New York Fashion Week History!

What do you think of Stuart’s new modeling photos? 

–Alex Heigl
Follow @alex_heigl