Model Alice Buckingham: “I Wanted To Go Into Neuroscience”

Christopher Kane debuted his first advertising campaign this week, lensed by photographer Harley Weir and styled by Joe McKenna. Our first question: Who’s that mystery model? Answer: Alice Buckingham, represented by Viva London. Kane, instead of opting for one of his recent muses like Allyson Chalmers, selected the unknown Buckingham, a 5’9″ stunner from England. We got in touch with Buckingham hear about her first big ad campaign shoot and working with Kane. We also learned that aside from being beautiful, she’s also a brainiac – Buckingham is currently studying neuroscience at university.

Congrats on landing the first-ever Christopher Kane campaign. How did you first connect with him? I met Chris [Kane] and Joe [McKenna] together in December last year and I absolutely adored them both. There was a lot of energy between us all. I’m new to modeling so I was very excited to meet them and we were chatting about all sorts for ages. I tried on the outfits and fell in love with the collection and I think Chris noticed that I felt like I could become it.

This is your first major campaign. How nervous were you? Yes this was my first campaign and it felt absolutely huge to me, and I still can’t quite believe it. I was a lot more excited than I was nervous. The whole team was so friendly and we all fused together, so I felt at ease working with them.

How did the shoot go? The shoot was so creative. [Photographer] Harley [Weir] has no boundaries. We were experimenting with the collection. I was using my body to create shapes that exaggerated the tassels, and I could hear Joe and Chris getting excited about the beautiful images. The highlights of working with Chris are that he was interested to know more about me as a person, talking to me about how I study neuroscience at university. He is so caring, always making sure I felt at ease and going to the extra effort to do little things like offering me cups of tea throughout the day. I was being treated like a princess.

What was your favorite thing you got to wear for the shoot? The dress with tassels was fun to play with. I could bring my arm over my face and peer through. I love the fragmented shapes on the shoulder and leg. The ‘crash and repair’ theme is so interesting.

How were you first scouted? Two years ago I was in London seeing a band called Peace. Leah Hibbert, my mother agent from Mutha came up to me and asked me if I’d consider modeling. She said she loved my big ears and ever since then I’ve embraced them!

Describe yourself in one sentence. I work hard and play hard.

What are some of your favorite brands to wear? What defines your style? Vagabond shoes, and I’m always wearing something from Urban Outfitters or Zara.

__ Did you always want to be a model__ I’ve always been curious about the brain, so from a young age I wanted to go into neuroscience. If I wasn’t modeling, I’d want to work in drug discovery into neurodegenerative diseases like Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s. The area is so limitless and there’s so much more that needs to be found out about the most feared diseases of our time.

What models do you admire most? Edie Campbell is unbelievable. She inspires me because she completed a degree while modeling at the same time and it gives me the confidence that I can balance both.

You landed a big campaign. What are you hoping for next? I’m hoping to do fashion month and I’m also looking forward to visit New York for some work. I’d love to work with Hedi Slimane, he’s amazing. ____