Fashion week? It’s a wrap. While we saw a lot of runway vets take to the catwalks (including mid-00s It-model Agyness Deyn who came out of retirement for the Saint Laurent show), we also saw a lot of newcomers too. These girls took some of fashion week’s most prestigious spots, opening and closing major shows or else landing exclusives (meaning that they walk for one brand and one brand only in a city). From Ruth Bell, the buzzed-about buzz cut beauty who stole the show at Gucci and Saint Laurent, to Olivia Jansing, the surfer girl who booked 39 shows in her first season: these are SS16’s breakout stars. You can expect to see a lot more of these fresh faces – they’ll shortly be appearing in fashion editorials, advertising campaigns and a lot more shows. Watch these spaces.
This recent high school grad was one this season’s Prada exclusives, however the brand’s SS16 show wasn’t her first time on the catwalk. Hailing from Amsterdam, Wijnaldum made several appearances at July’s haute couture shows, starring in Jean Paul Gaultier and Valentino.
A 39-show season is an impressive feat even for an established model, but that’s exactly what new face Olivia Jansing has done for SS16. However the Long Island-born Manhattenite’s talents aren’t limited to the catwalk, she’s also an avid boxer (as evidenced by her Instagram) and surfer. With a season like this under her belt, we can expect a lot to come from this New Yorker.
Born and raised in India, this former computer engineering student made her modelling debut at Louis Vuitton’s cruise 2015 show in Palm Springs in May and, shortly after, was shot by Charlotte Wales for the Autumn 2015 issue of Dazed. Her SS16 highlights included starring in Givenchy’s Marina Abramović art directed event and Alexander McQueen’s Paris Fashion Week show.
Winner of Korea's Next Top Model season 4, this business student has had a great season, walking for some of her favourite designers such as Dries van Noten. She’s won over Miuccia Prada who booked her for both her labels – Prada and Miu Miu.
While she did a smattering of shows for AW15, it’s this season that this Los Angeles girl has taken off. Metza has already been shot by some industry legends including Dazed 100 photographer Willy Vanderperre and, in the past weeks, has walked for Proenza in New York, Prada in Milan and Miu Miu in Paris.
RUTH BELL
Ruth Bell in the Autumn 2015 issue of DazedPhotography Lachlan Bailey
Hailing from Kent, this identical twin shaved her head for Alexander McQueen’s AW15 campaign and – like Linda Evangelista and Aggy Deyn who similarly underwent drastic hair changes – won over the fashion industry as a result. Alongside Gucci and Saint Laurent (along with the brand’s cruise 2016 campaign shot by Hedi Slimane), she’s booked jobs for Versace, Lanvin and Kenzo.
Gonzalez only featured in one show this season, so why the fuss? Well, that show was Louis Vuitton and last season Fernanda Ly – whose pink tresses caught the industry’s attention – did exactly the same thing. On the last day of Paris Fashion Week, the Dominican made her way down the house’s Fondation Louis Vuitton catwalk wearing a futuristic dress made from a silverised chiffon with a holographic sheen. Watch this space.
While this was Merino’s first season, this Barcelona native nabbed one of the industry’s most coveted spots: the opening slot at Prada. She’s not only found a fan in the brand’s casting director Ashley Brokaw, who also booked her for Miu Miu and J.W. Anderson (exclusively in London). We can expect great things from a Prada-approved new face – Lara Stone, Daria Werbowy and Gemma Ward are among models whose respective careers were launched by the house.
Bowl-cut beauty Peyton Knight started off her season as an exclusive for Alexander Wang. Despite this being her first time on the catwalk, the Missouri native has been modelling since she was 11 (she was discovered at a cinema, seeing Twilight: New Moon). Her first shoot was with Steven Meisel and it’s been onwards and upwards ever since. This season she walked for J.W. Anderson, Gucci, Prada, Versace and Balenciaga among others.
ESTELLA BOERSMA
Estelle Boersma for Miu Miu Pre-Fall 2015 campaignPhotography Jamie Hawkesworth
One of Prada’s AW15 campaign girls, Boersma walked for Louis Vuitton exclusively this season. In her short career, the Amsterdam native has already been shot by a bevy of the fashion industry’s most fêted photographers including Dazed favourite Jamie Hawkesworth (for Miu Miu’s pre-fall 2015 campaign).
