Joan Smalls (seen here backstage at Roberto Cavalli) has been modeling since 2007, but you could say that it's only now that she's really getting noticed. The 21-year-old previously appeared in the Nordstrom catalogue and walked for smaller designers like Benajmin Cho and Heatherette. But this past January she landed her big break with an exclusive at Givenchy couture. "It was my rebirth," says the Puerto Rico native. "I will always be appreciative to Ricardo Tisci for believing in me." After seeing her all over the fall runways, we were more than ready to get to get to know Smalls a little better.When did you realize you wanted to be a model?
I became obsessed watching fashion TV shows when I was a teenager and recognized that I had the height and body frame. I especially became hooked when I saw on E! True Hollywood Story how much a model can make and how I can achieve a better living for my family and me.
What was your first big splurge when you made it in the modeling world?
I got my dad a pickup truck.
What are your favorite hangouts back home?
A town called Pinones that has secluded beaches that I would frequent with my boyfriend. It felt like paradise.
Burberry fall 2010, left.; Gucci fall 2010Tell us a favorite childhood memory.
When I was about four years old I would sneak my two dogs Milo and Otis into my room and have them lay on each side of me while I watched Sesame Street.
What are three things that you always carry in your suitcase?
My bikini, a pair of black high heels and a pair of comfortable jeans.
Prada fall 2010, left. Givenchy spring 2010What's been your biggest fashion mistake?
I hope I haven't had one!
What do you have a weakness for?
Kittens and shoes.
Clockwise from top: Ports 1961 spring 2008 campaign; Liz Claiborne 2007 campaign; Bond magazine coverGive us three words to describe yourself.
Caring, funny and astute.
If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?
To not be so affected by negative situations.
Where do you see yourself in 10 years?
Hopefully successful, and with a family.
Clockwise from top: V magazine's July 2008 issue; backstage at Etro fall 2010; Isaac Mizrahi fall 2010 Check back next week for the latest installment of The Skinny. And see all our previous model Q&As here!
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During New York fashion week, there's one show that every model wants to walk in: Marc Jacobs. So, when an unfamiliar brunette opened Jacobs' presentation at the Armory last month, plenty of people took notice. Some even thought she might have been one of the girls Jacobs pulled off the street to walk in the show. As it turns out, the model was relative newcomer Tati Cotliar, a 19-year-old from Buenos Aires who's only been modeling for about a year. (Last season she did spring 2010 Rodarte and Vivienne Westwood.) Cotliar followed her Jacobs coup with turns at Proenza Schouler and Tommy Hilfiger and had just landed in Milan when we caught up with her.
Three years ago, when Baptiste Giabiconi was working at a helicopter plant in southern France, his big dream was to save enough money to buy his own pizza truck. The son of a Corsican mechanic, Giabiconi (seen here in a portrait shot by Ola Rindal) had never been to Paris and had certainly never considered a career in modeling. But then someone noticed him at his local gym and referred him to a photographer, who introduced him to a Paris agent, who got him booked on a couple of small magazine jobs. Then someone else noticed him in one of those magazines and called him in for a test shoot.
With an intense look complemented by pale blue eyes, newcomer Jenny
Sinkaberg is one of the girls expected to shine when the shows
officially kick off tomorrow. Though she’s making her New York debut
this week, it certainly isn’t her first trip down the catwalk. After
signing with IMG last September, the 17-year-old Oslo native (seen here backstage at Chanel) debuted
during the spring 2010 collections in Paris at Balenciaga, Miu Miu and
Giambattista Valli. But it was at the spring 2010 couture shows that
Sinkaberg really wowed. There she managed to land gigs with three of
fashion’s most storied houses: Christian Dior, Valentino and Chanel.
With that kind of resume, we’re excited to see what Sinkaberg has in
store.
The Hungarian model Eniko Mihalik (seen here in W's April 2009 issue) is known for her amazing cheekbones, large doe eyes and all-around sex appeal (she's among the topless beauties in the new Pirelli calendar shot by Terry Richardson). But the 21-year-old who was discovered six years ago in a mall by a casting agent in her hometown of Bekescsaba—and has since become a regular in the pages of W, French Vogue and V—hasn't given up her more innocent amusements. As we learned, she's got a beloved teddy bear and a thing for Nickelodeon.
Ten years ago, when Czech model Hana Soukupová was just 14 years old, the
blonde bombshell entered a Prague modeling contest so she could win $100 to
buy Christmas gifts for her family. With her classically beautiful face and
Barbie-doll legs, it's no surprise Soukupová walked away with the top prize.
Since then, the now 24-year-old has walked in hundreds of runway shows
including Versace, Zac Posen and the 2006 and 2007 Victoria's Secret fashion
show, and most recently starred in the fall 2009 Anne Klein and spring 2009
St. John ad campaigns. We caught up with Soukupová not long after the
holidays.
Above: Anne Klein's fall 2009 campaign
Versace Jeans Couture spring 2010 ad campaign
English model Lily Cole got her big break when she debuted in a 2003 Steven
Meisel shoot for Italian Vogue and it was only a year later that she was
named Model of the Year at the 2004 British Fashion Awards. At the height of
her career, the wide-eyed, redheaded Cole—a favorite of designers such as
John Paul Gaultier and Christian Lacroix—appeared on a number of
international Vogue covers and starred in ad campaigns for Prada and
Moschino. And then, like many so models, she caught the acting bug. Marilyn Manson cast her in the role of Alice in Phantasmagoria: The Visions
of Lewis Carroll (the film has yet to be released). Now Cole, 21, has a
starring role in Terry Gilliam's The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, which
hits theaters Christmas Day. Acting alongside the late Heath Ledger and
Christopher Plummer, Cole debuts serious chops as Valentina, a rebellious
teen desperate to get away from her father's surreal world.
Cole modeling at the Paris launch party of Sonia Rykiel's lingerie collection for H&M
Cole with Colin Farrell in "The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus"
Cole with Heath Ledger in "The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus"
From left: Cole on the cover of Elle Canada's January 2010 issue; Cole in Rimmel London's fall 2009 campaign
Cole in "Dominica" by Juergen Teller in W's March 2009 issue.
Lyndsey Scott likes to take matters into her own hands. Case in point:
rather than waiting to be discovered, the 19-year-old from West Orange, New
Jersey, posted her own picture on Models.com before she even had an agent.
It was only a matter of time before Click Models came calling and soon after
she became the first African-American model to land a Calvin Klein
exclusive. During the spring 2010 season, Scott walked in over 35 shows
including Prada and Gucci, and most recently she was playful in Pink at the
Victoria's Secret 2009 fashion show. Scott can be seen in our Craig McDean
January issue portfolio, "Run of Show" (above left).
From left: Calvin Klein fall 2009, Prada spring 2010
DKNY's fall 2009 campaign
Scott (center) in "Run of Show" in our January issue
Baby Phat's fall 2009 campaign
From left: Louis Vuitton spring 2010, Gucci spring 2010
Victoria's Secret's Holiday fashion show 2009
Meghan Collison, 21 (seen here backstage at Givenchy), isn't a classic beauty. But the dark-haired,
strong-featured native of Edmonton, Canada has become a fashion world
favorite just for that reason. Collison got her start three years ago when
she won a contest held by Mode Models (a Canadian modeling agency). Since
then, she's become one of the most requested girls in the industry, walking
the runway for Givenchy, Jason Wu and Alexander McQueen, among others. When
she's not in front of a camera, Collison -- who now lives in Brooklyn --
says she spends her time exploring New York City, crocheting and playing
with her cat Pixie.
Levi's fall 2009 campaign
From left: H&M's fall 2008 campaign; Topshop's fall 2009 campaign
From left: Swarovski's fall 2009 campaign; Collison on the cover of Vogue Italia's October 2007 issue
From left: Givenchy spring 2010; Jason Wu resort 2010
From left: Collison on the cover of Zoo Magazine's fall 2009 issue, V magazine's September 2009 issue
Levis fall 2009 campaign
