The Bite Magazine - Autumn/Winter 2019 - Issue 26

S i, Si! Bella dama! Si! (Yes, yes! Beautiful lady! Yes!). Latino model Joan Smalls Rodriguez is indeed one beautiful lady inside and out. Not only is this 5’10” stunner a force to be reckoned with on the runway, but she’s also a com- mitted philanthropist and leading spokeswomen for bringing equality and diversity into the fashion industry. Or simply put, she’s a badass who’s not afraid to get her hands dirty and give it her all, no matter the focus. Having skyrocketed to supermod- el-status in just under ten years, Joan Smalls is one of those ‘reality’ fairytale stories in the industry that makes us mortals believe there are some truly genuine people working in the fashion world. Not everyone is in it for the glory, the fan numbers, the likes, or the Instafilter, but rather they’re there to make a mark, to make a difference. Born and raised in the rural town of Hatillo, Puerto Rico, Smalls, and her two sisters had a rather normal upbringing. Her father was an accountant and her mother was a social worker, both of whom instilled a very positive, confident and hard-working determination in their youngest daughter. In 2007, the would-be model began competing in local beauty pageants (and losing if you can believe it) to modelling for department store catalogs. At 18, she graduated from the Inter- american University of Puerto Rico in two years as magna cum laude (with great distinction) with a Bache- lor’s Degree in Psychology. After this impressive accomplishment, Smalls packed her bags and moved to New York City to begin pursuing her mod- elling career. Unlike many other models, Smalls had a rather late start into her career, beginning post-graduation at the age of 19, which again makes her rapid rise to supermodel stardom all the more impressive. When she arrived in the Big Apple, she aggressively pursued being signed and was quickly picked up by Elite Model Manage- ment, and then left to sign with IMG Models worldwide in 2009 where she decided to focus mostly on runway work and assignments. The model told Simone Kitchens, Glamour’s associate beauty director in 2016 how she actively pursued beginning her career. “Initially that meant finding a new agent; I needed someone who believed in me [as] I believed in myself. I had a game plan: Make sure to get an exclusive. Shoot with this photographer. Go to events. Be social. But also being black and Hispanic, you have so much to prove to yourself and your family and every- body back home. I wanted to prove to people it doesn’t matter if you come from a small little island, that you can make it in this industry.” Soon after, in January 2010, she walked as an exclusive for Riccardo Tisci’s Givenchy Spring/Summer Haute Couture Show. She then got the possible break of her very young career and was signed to walk in the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show. Since then, she has been a key model in their 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, and 2016 shows. This event helped to launch her booking other major luxury brands like Prada, Gucci, Tom Ford, Louis Vuitton, Chanel, Yves Saint Laurent, Chloé, Moschino, Alex- ander Wang, Fendi, Jean-Paul Gautier, Marc Jacobs, Dior, Valentino, Oscar De La Renta, and Versace to name a few. As if this wasn’t enough, she also appeared in numerous national and international fashion magazines, including 11 international editions of Harper’s Bazaar, Vogue, i-D, Elle, bite model profile Beautiful, talented, unique and a true philanthropist, Joan Smalls’ work ethics has Dawn Hunt gushing about the supermodel. Model Profile: Photography Karl Lagerfeld Joan Smalls