MARJAN JONKMAN
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.
“Hedi Slimane is my favorite designer and he always will be. He is the one who launched my career. Besides, I really love his style, at least as much as I love him as a person.”
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…)
Super Love Unknown 
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