Celebrating the Chinese New Year and focusing on “creativity” in the March 2021 edition of Vogue China, Kristina Grikaite puts on a lively showing like only she can as a big kid at heart, resembling colorful themes from The Little Rascals and Walt Disney with plenty of spirited gaudiness from Versace and Chanel! Photography by Roe Ethridge
Birgit Kos dazzles in the February 2021 US edition of Elle, elgantley strolling around the cobblestone streets of Seine, Paris, showing off the best designer pieces from the likes of Saint Laurent, Anthony Vaccarello, Hedi Slimane, Nomasei, Alexandre Vauthier, Louis Vuitton, Giorgio Armani, Max Mara, and Hermes. Photography by Nathaniel Goldberg
With all the flamboyance and creativity of David Bowie, coolness of Sid Vicious, and hardcore punk style of the Misfits, Marjan Jonkman has been an industry favorite and standout ever since she made her debut for Saint Laurent’s 2015 Spring Summer fashion show in Paris, where the runways would become her home away from home.
Before becoming an exclusive for Saint Laurant and top model, Marjan led a normal life with her loving family in Friesland: “I grew up in a small town in the north, Sint Nicolaasga in Friesland. I still enjoy being there, especially during busy periods around Fashion Weeks. I like to take long walks in the woods, and even leave my phone at home.”
Usually upbeat with a pep in her step, admittedly, Marjan was a bit of a problem child and was quite the opposite of what she is today. “I was quite a problem child, a lot of tantrums and often sad, I had intense mood swings and was quite closed.”
With a Rock n’ Roll spirit and a deep desire to leave her village in Sint Nicolaasga with some 3,300 inhabitants for something more, Marjan, who never wanted to be a model was scouted at the age of 18 years old on Instagram and saw an opportunity, cancelling her studies at the University of Groningen:
“At first I thought: what is that man [scout] talking about? I canceled my study and room in Groningen. Two weeks later I got on the plane. I am quite impulsive, I didn’t really expect anything from it, but saw it as a nice opportunity. I partied in New York for two months straight.”
I’m an alligator
I’m a mama-papa coming for you
I’m a space invader
I’ll be a rock ‘n’ rollin’ bitch for you
Keep your mouth shut
You’re squawking like a pink monkey bird
And I’m busting up my brains for the words
18, her agent away in Mexico, and still very much uninterested in modeling, Marjan’s start couldn’t have been more doomed, and to make matters worse, no one knew what to do with Marjan’s look and despite the alterations and haircuts, work just wasn’t going well.
Yet in Paris, a better market for edgier models, Marjan’s fortunes would begin to turn when Hedi Slimane, then creative director of Saint Laurent booked her exclusively for his show and also for the Saint Laurent campaign. Marjan would then have a Linda Evangelista transformation to her career when Hedi decided to have her hair and eyebrows bleached.
Keep your ‘lectric eye on me, babe
Put your ray gun to my head
Press your space face close to mine, love
Freak out in a moonage daydream, oh yeah
Don’t fake it, baby
Lay the real thing on me
The church of man, love
Is such a holy place to be
Make me, baby
Make me know you really care
Make me jump into the air
After that, Marjan’s career began to take off majorly, walking for brands like Gucci, Max Mara, Trussardi, Lanvin, Miu Miu, Stella McCartney, Marc Jacobs, Prada, Versace, Jean Paul Gaultier, Fendi, while having some of her first commercial work for Adidas and Anteprima, and editorials Numero, Vogue and Interview Magazine.
In just her first year in 2015, Marjan walked in up to 70 shows, opening for Rochas, Missoni, MSGM, Emanuel Ungaro, and closing for Marc Jacobs. Yet, the following year in 2016 would be even grandeur as she walked for Chanel, Moschino, Dior, Puma, Vera Wang, Michael Kors, Simone Rocha, Guccie, Fendi, Philosophy, and Isabel Marant to name a few. By the end of 2016, Marjan walked over 100 shows, cementing herself as main fixture on the runways.
Marjan would have one of her most successful years commercially in 2016, doing work for Topshop, Marc Jacobs, Lanvin Eyewear, Dsquared, Net-A-Porter, and Roberto Cavalli. Marjan. Marjan would also land her first fashion magazine cover for Vogue Me China for their December 2016 issue, photographed by Zeng Wu.
Matching her down-to-earth Dutch, Frisian nature and big heart, Marjan became an ambassador for SOS Children’s Villages, an independent, non-profit, non-governmental, organization providing humanitarian and developmental assistance to children in need. “I have such a nice life and I want to give something back. The family is central to the organization and family is also the most important for me.
“Playing with all those children and helping in the SOS families with peeling potatoes and cutting bananas. Four-year-olds could do better and laughed at me. They also called me ‘mzungu’ all the time. white! My hair was an attraction.”
Today, Marjan Jonkman is one of the most sought-after top models in the industry with hundreds of fashion shows under her belt, dozens of fashion editorials, magazine covers, and campaigns! “I always had the feeling that I had to leave Sint Nicolaasga, a village with 3300 inhabitants. My modeling turned out well for me. I found my way.”
Keep your ‘lectric eye on me, babe
Put your ray gun to my head
Press your space face close to mine, love
Freak out in a moonage daydream, oh yeah
I think Marjan is such an exciting and unique model. I love her bleached eyebrows, hair, and killer bangs. There’s something about her that screams David Bowie to me. I guess it’s because she’s so flamboyant and eccentric. On fashion forums, she’s critiqued by some for not being versatile enough on the runways.
But I love Marjan’s walk. She has more of a glide to me, poised and self controlled. She makes fashion and Haute Couture so fun. Haute Couture usually looks silly to me, but when Marjan wears it, it makes sense and looks pretty cool. She’s a rockstar in what she wears and she brings so much punk spirit to fashion that the runway becomes her rock stage.
“It’s so, so, so important [talking about what fashion means to her]. Not only because I work in it myself, but also because you can express yourself through clothes and emphasize all sides of yourself.”
When Marjan isn’t doing fashion, she’s riding horses, going on long walks as she’s an exercise addict and vegan, and she loves her family and boyfriend above all else, that along with her Dutch upbringing, keeps her grounded in an industry where it’s hard not to feel like a superstar: I give everything on a set, it is sometimes tough but you don’t hear me moaning. I am well paid for it. Besides, I do not take this life for granted.”
Much like Rianne van Rompaey, Marjan is a larger than life personality and creative. She’s such a likable person with a big heart and bubbly personality. Her looks reminds me so much of the Ziggy Stardust persona, Sex Pistols, and Misfits. Like more and more top models in the industry, she’s so relatable and talented, that I just admire her work and what she does creatively.
From Hunky Dory to an out of this world punk inspired model, Marjan Jonkman is the type of model and person, I can’t help but adore. She’s terrestrial and extraterrestrial at the same time, uncanny and quite unparalleled. As Bowie was to music, so is Marjan to fashion. A Superlove that inspires the spread of humor and love, yet otherworldly, a moonage daydream, Marjan Jonkman.
Freak out (Freak out, freak out, freak out, freak out…)
Far out (Far out, far out, far out, far out…)
In out (In out, in out, in out, in out…)
In Constance Jablonski’s first trip ever to Madrid, she graces the cover and pages of Harper’s Bazaar February 2021 issue in an extravagant display of Madrid inspired fashion with plenty of sombrero and roses! Constance is decked out in some of the latest pieces by HERMÈS, ISABEL MARANT, BVLGARI, Chloe, Prada, Fendi, Christian Louboutin, Chanel, Miu Miu, etc. The title “A Red Idyll” is more than appropriate as there’s plenty of passionate reds throughout to emphasis all of the romance of Spain in February. In the article on Harper’s Bazaar, Constance revisits her amazing career, while marveling at how the fashion industry has changed as well as her with it.
Photography by Xavi Gordo, Hair and Makeup by Yurema Villa, and stylist Beatriz Machado. Source: Harper’s Bazaar España.
Before all the glitz and glam of runway life and gracing the covers some of most famous fashion magazines in the world, Luna Bijl, from the small Dutch town of Strijen, was a not so unusual teenager who contrary to her future phenomenon status, enjoyed the carefree life, spending time with her father doing motocross and leading a normal life as a high schooler:
“I did motocross and was always playing outside. I never thought of myself as a pretty girl. I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do after I finished high school and, as I got older, I also got much taller and people suggested that I give modeling a go.”
Although constantly approached by modeling scouts at an early age and egged on by others, Luna’s heart wasn’t really into the prospects of the fashion biz. “I didn’t like the whole modeling thing at all at first,” she admits. “I was a real tomboy and I didn’t find myself beautiful – quite the opposite, actually – and I just thought, I don’t think I want to do this.”
But Luna’s mind was changed when she viewed a Channel 4 Docuseries called The Model Agency of the famed Premier Model Management where cameras showed the unglamerous realities of models in the fashion industry. Although already signed with a local agency in Rotterdam, Luna and her father were so moved by the series that they decided to email co-founder of Premier, Carole White, in hopes of revitalizing Luna’s seemingly bleak modeling prospects:
Roman candles that burn in the night
Yeah, you are a shining light
You lit a torch in the infinite
Yeah, you are a shining light
Yeah, you light up my lifeYou have always been a thorn in their side
But to me you’re a shining light
You arrive and the night is alive
Yeah, you are a shining light
Yeah, you light up my life
We made a connection
A full-on chemical reaction
Brought by dark divine intervention
Yeah, you are a shining light
A constellation once seen
Over Royal David’s city
An epiphany, you burn so pretty
Yeah, you are a shining light
That brave email would reach Premier and at just 15 years old, Luna would chart a course to stardom when she boarded a plane to London with her father to meet Carole. The famed founder immediately saw promise in Luna and took time to patiently develop the young talent. “Luna is a very special model,” says White. “I’d compare her to the classic ’90s supermodels in that she’s got a tremendously beautiful face and she looks fit and healthy – she’s not a stick.”
A calculated long game, Luna, her father, and Premier agreed to base her modeling around her studies, ensuring she could graduate high school and enjoy a teenage life. Around 17 years old, Luna relocated to New York where she shared an apartment with five other girls. With a 15 euro Primark bag, MetroCard, and wearing Nikes, Luna went from audition to audition in hopes of establishing herself.
That summer Luna began to reap the fruits of her labor, walking for major names like Polo Ralph Lauren, Alberta Ferretti, Etro, Philosophy, Dolce & Gabbana, Isabel Marant, Trussardi, and Vivienne Westwood. The following year, Luna would make a grand debut, doing some of her first major editorial work for Vogue Australia, Vogue Netherlands, and Vogue España.
You are a force, you are a constant source
Yeah, you are a shining light
Incandescent in the darkest night
Yeah, you are a shining light
My mortal blood I would sacrifice
For you are a shining light
Sovereign bride of the infinite
Yeah, you are a shining light
Yeah, you light up my life
That same year, Luna became the face of mega Italian luxury brand Emporio Armani, second brand of of the Armani family, photographed by none other than Lachlan Bailey. She also did advertising work for AllSaints, Express, Zara, and Mango. Even with that level of success the best was yet to come, when Luna became the first model ever to land two VOGUE PARIS COVERS IN THE SAME YEAR for the August and October 2016 issues, both photographed by David Sims!
Luna ended her prolific year in fashion, walking for colossal brands like Jean Paul Gaultier Michael Kors, Fendi, Moschino, Alexander Wang, Chloe, Chanel, Stella McCartney, John Galliano, Miu Miu, Louis Vuitton, even closing for Redemption. With Luna finally having brand recognition, she could go as far as her ambition and love for the job would take her. “My name is now established. Now it is the art of staying at the top for as long as possible.”
Today Luna is one of the most in demand top models around, having over 20 fashion covers, 17 alone being for Vogue magazine. She’s walked in hundreds of shows, opening and closing for the late Karl Lagerfeld’s Chanel, while dazzling in ads for Philosophy, Michael Kors, Chanel Eyewear, Tom Ford ‘Eau de Soleil Blanc’ Fragrance, H&M, and Hugo Boss!
We made a connection
A full-on chemical reaction
Brought by dark divine intervention
Yeah, you are a shining light
A constellation once seen
Over Royal David’s city
An epiphany, you burn so pretty
Yeah, you are a shining light
Along with working with industry leading photographers like Cass Bird, Lachlan Bailey, David Sims, Mario Sorrenti, Liz Collins, Chris Colls, Carlijn Jacobs, Luigi & Lango, and Nathanial Goldbeg, Luna Bijl had the honor of working with the late Peter Lindbergh for the star studded Vogue Germany July 2019 issue featuring Luna, Vittoria Ceretti, and best friend, Birgit Kos!
When it comes to the world of high fashion modeling, I don’t think there’s anyone else quite like Luna Bijl. She has a classic ’90s supermodel feel like a Cindy Crawford, Claudia Schiffer with natural talent bordering on Linda Evangelista level of depth. Luna is probably one of the most photogenic models I have ever seen. Even without having knowledge of her impressive portfolio, with a Google image search, any casual modeling fan can see how phenomenal of a talent Luna is.
Luna has incredible range. She can be sultry but in a sophisticated, mature way. She can emote exceptionally well; no one shows a smile or laugh the way Luna can. She can be as innovative and avant-garde as anyone like her own fashionably buoyant van Gogh:
These are the days you often say
There’s nothing that we cannot do
Beneath a canopy of stars
I’d shed blood for you
The north star in the firmament
You shine the most bright
I’ve seen you draped in a electric veil
Shrouded in celestial light
“I never expected it, but I really like shooting photographs. The moment I get in front of the subject, I am in a different world. I love creating a picture that people will look at for hours and which will make them think. I would never allow myself to not do my best at a shoot because I really care about what I do. If people put their trust in me I don’t want them to regret it!”
And when it comes to professionalism and work ethic, Luna Bijl undoubtedly ranks at the top of the list. Even Carole White praises Luna level of commitment, using the word “stoicism” when describing Luna: “Even if she’s tired from traveling, she’ll give her absolute best, and I’ve never – not once – heard her complain about another model. Which is rare, I can tell you!”
When Luna isn’t lighting up the runways or setting fire to the covers of Vogue, she’s no doubt chillin’ somewhere in a leather jacket, practically living in her favorite sweatpants, kickin’ it in a pair of Nike’s which she will readily admit she has too many pairs to count. Luna is also hilariously clumsy, famously cracking a bathtub in a fancy Amsterdam hotel. She can be unorganized as well, comically remarking, “Life of Luna” in her mishaps.
From the roaring engines lacing the brake fluid, gasoline, and dirt tracks of her motocross haven, to a lone MetroCard, going to auditions in her Nike’s in hopes of a dream, to being Karl Lagerfeld’s favorite model, Luna Bijl is a bright and tremendous force in the world of fashion. Like some effervescent cosmic body, Luna can’t help but enamor others with her candor and creative force. An imperfect, perfect model, haphazardly walking to her own tune, drowning out all the gloom, leaving love and all that’s bright in her wake, Luna Bijl; named like the celestial moon.
Missing the good ol’ days of cinema and movie-going, the people of Vogue Polska decided to dedicate an issue to fashion and film, featuring Polish acting stars like Magdalena Koleśnik, Maja Ostaszewska, and famed costume designer Anna B. Sheppard. The cover star Birgit Kos channels her inner movie star for the feature and delivers glamorous looks from pinup golden age Hollywood, Sharon Stone in Basic Instinct, and even late 80s Linda Evangelista with Peter Lindbergh! There’s a little Siouxsie and the Banshees in there, too, but that’s just be me (lol). But this is such a cool cover and discussion to start off the year for Vogue Polska and they couldn’t have picked a more fitting model to highlight the wonders of cinema than Birgit! Photography by Sonia Szostak, Fashion Director Karla Gruszecka. Source Vogue.pl and Models.com
Evangelista ♡
Super Love Unknown 
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