A Model World

I know what you’re thinking…

“What does this model know? She sees the world through the blinding glare of a ring flash.”

Fair enough.

Our industry has done a spectacular job of proving that superficiality can, in fact, be elevated to an art form. We sell dreams, handbags, moisturiser, and occasionally the idea that wearing white linen on a beach is a perfectly practical life choice.

But behind every glossy campaign is a wonderfully strange world.

After decades of modelling around the globe—from television commercials as a ten-year-old to Miss Universe Australia, international fashion markets, television presenting, and more photo shoots than I could possibly count—I’ve collected stories far more entertaining than the photographs themselves.

I’ve witnessed Naomi Campbell throw a tantrum, survived laser hair removal burns, modelled swimwear in a Muslim country, and learned that the most glamorous-looking photo often begins with someone standing ankle-deep in mud while pretending they’re having the time of their life.

This is a world fuelled by impossible beauty standards, impossible deadlines, oversized personalities, tiny sample sizes, and enough hairspray to permanently damage the ozone layer.

It’s also full of extraordinary people.

No, modelling isn’t rocket surgery (or rocket science, for that matter), and not every model is secretly solving quantum physics between wardrobe changes. But neither are we all vacant, vapid, or permanently staring at our own reflections. Some of us even managed to finish university before jumping on a plane to see the world.

A Model World is a collection of those adventures—the funny, the absurd, the glamorous, the embarrassing, and the surprisingly human moments that happen when the cameras stop flashing.

So kick off your heels, grab a coffee (or champagne—I won’t judge), and come travelling with me. I promise there are far more stories than pillow fights in lingerie.

…Although, admittedly, there have been a few of those too.