106-year-old Filipino is Vogue’s oldest-ever cover model
Vogue Philippines has revealed 106-year-old tattoo artist Apo Whang-Od, best known as Maria Oggay, as the cover star of its April issue, making her the oldest person ever to appear on the front of Vogue.
Whang-Od has been perfecting the art of hand-tapping tattoos since she was a teenager, learning under her father’s instruction. She resides in the mountain village of Buscalan, about 15 hours north of Manila, in Kalinga province. Also, she is considered as Philippines’ oldest mambabatok or traditional Kalinga tattooist.
In the past, the hand-tapped tattoos that Whang-Od created using just a bamboo stick, a thorn from a pomelo tree, water and coal, were earned by indigenous Butbut warriors.
In this new age, international visitors seeking her signature geometric designs make up many of her customers.
“Heralded as the last mambabatok of her generation, she has imprinted the symbols of the Kalinga tribe — signifying strength, bravery, and beauty — on the skin of thousands of people who have made the pilgrimage to Buscalan,” Vogue Philippines said in a post on social media.
The art can only be passed down to blood relatives, and Whang Od has been training her grandnieces Elyang Wigan and Grace Palicas for several years.
Vogue Philippines editor-in-chief Bea Valdes revealed that staff at the publication decided unanimously that Whang-Od should go on the cover. “We felt she represented our ideals of what is beautiful about our Filipino culture.
“We believe that the concept of beauty needs to evolve, and include diverse and inclusive faces and forms. What we hope to speak about is the beauty of humanity,” Valdes added.
Meanwhile, before Whang-Od’s appearance in Vogue Philippines, the record holder for the oldest Vogue cover model was actress Judi Dench, who appeared in front of British Vogue in 2020, at the age of 85.
