Modeling Journey

I cannot rhapsodise enough over the impossibly gorgeous New Zealand model Jessica Clarke. Nineteen year old Clarke was scouted three years ago whilst on a family outing at a local cinema by Clyne Model Management director Kim Larking. Clarke has the kind of face that model agents dream of, perfect in symmetry, with azure baby blues, peaches and cream complexion and a come hither pout. Clarke made the move to New York in January where she is now represented by powerhouse agency DNA Models. The industry buzz surrounding Clarke hit overdrive before she had even set foot on an international runway. Influential casting director Ashely Brokaw gushed to the NY Times "Just saw a girl Jesica Clarke at DNA. Very excited about her. Classic supermodel material from New Zealand." Casting directors Gregori Boina and Rami Fernandes also spotted Clarke's potential as she made the rounds of New York's casting circuit and placed her on exclusive for Calvin Klein's Spring 2011 show. 

Clarke so far lists her D&G Spring/Summer 2011 campaign and her Calvin Klein exclusive during her debut season as two outstanding career highlights. In an interview with wwd.com, Clarke recalls "Getting the D&G campaign was amazing. I love Dolce and it was kind of surreal to shoot with Mario Testino. He's incredibly talented but also the nicest man. Also when I got the Calvin Klein exclusive my first season. It was such a big deal." Clarke maintains a level head despite the hype and explains in an interview with the Cut that "I would love to do a campaign and some super creative editorials. I have a lot of growing to do in terms of modelling so the more work I can do, the more experience which will help me become a better model." I'll admit that I have a serious girl crush on Clarke and cannot wait for the rest of the fashion industry to follow suit.

Arizona-born Kelly Mittendorf has been selected to front the Fall/Winter 2011 Prada campaign alongside fellow newcomers Ondria Hardin, Antonia Wesseloh, Julia Zimmer and established face Frida Gustavsson. The campaign shot by Steven Meisel showcases the talents of the four unknown models, some of whom will be making their runway debuts at the September collections. Casting director Ashley Brokaw clearly had fresh faced beauty in mind when selecting the stellar line-up for the Fall/Winter campaign. Kudos has to be given to Muccia Prada for allowing Brokaw to select complete unknowns for what is undoubtedly the campaign coup of the season. Mittendorf looks every bit the star in the making in the first images to be released and will no doubt capture the attention of casting directors and designers in the lead up to the September shows. 

After a succession of Brazilian, Beglian, Russian, and Dutch models, it appears that Australians could very well be riding high on the next wave of models set to infiltrate the modelling world. In the agency show packages released in the lead up to the Fall/Winter 2011 shows, Australians feature prominently, with 7 out of the 25 models presented in the official Elite Models show package being Australian.

Established Australian models Catherine McNeil and Abbey Lee Kershaw are not officially slated to appear at New York Fashion Week but will be duly represented by emerging talents; Bambi Northwood-Blyth, Julia Nobis, Ajak Deng, Alice Burdeu, Tallulah Morton, Amanda Ware, Myf Shepherd, Lauren Brown, Annaleise Smith, Ruby Jean Wilson, Melissa Johannsen aka MJ, and Codie Young. This is just the tip of the iceberg with fellow Antipodean models; Stephanie Cherry, Samantha Harris, Juliana Forge, Meg Lindsay, Rachel Rutt, Stephanie Carta and Alexandra Agoston O'Connor yet to be confirmed for appearances during the Fall/Winter show season.

According to influential US casting director Ashley Brokaw in an interview with the New York Times, "Thing's are steering away from the army casting we've seen in recent years." With the focus shifting towards personality and individuality, models like Abbey Lee Kershaw who possess a quirkiness and an unaffected, natural beauty that is endearing, are positioned to do well. There is no doubt that Australian models will feature prominently throughout the Fall/Winter 2011 shows, the question that remains however is which models will garner the attention of the all important fashion editors, photographers and stylists?