Joachim Gram, an interview. by Silvia Bombardini

Dear Shaded Viewers and Diane,

A few days ago I had the pleasure to meet lovely Danish model Joachim Gram at Les Deux Abeilles, where he very sweetly agreed to share with me some of his thoughts, story and dreams. Now based in Paris, Joachim studied finance in London modeling in the meantime for “good and bad photographers”, and a very talented painter. His eyes though still mirror the deep lulling waves of the North Sea.

 

S.B.: Many models don’t appear to consider their job as something permanent, even when it eventually becomes so. It’s often conceived as a temporary profession, or as a means to get somewhere else. What about you, would you like to be a model forever, or are there other goals in your dreams?

J.G.: I think there are definitely other goals, modeling for me has never been a full time occupation, it’s always been something I’ve been doing on the side of something else, but as long as I keep doing it on the side of something else I would like to continue modeling.

S.B.: And what would you be doing now if you weren’t a model?

J.G.: It’s difficult to say… I’ve been studying until last year, so this is my first year off, when I’m modeling, and helping my friend with her fashion line so..

S.B.: Was it a smooth way, from Denmark to Paris, or were there obstacles, doubts, or hard choices to make?

J.G.: There  were obstacles! I was only seventeen when I moved, it was an hard choice but I’m not regretting it at all.

S.B.: Yeah are you happy here?

J.G.: Yes, I’m very happy.

S.B.: I’m very happy here too.

J.G.: It’s great. And it really broadened my horizons, meeting new people, seeing new things..

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S.B.: Could you tell me something about your background, how did you decide to start doing what you do, or how was your first modeling experience, perhaps?

J.G.: I was still studying back in Denmark and there was this modeling agency that was advertising for new models.. so I went to the casting and they told me that they really liked me, and that I should come through to the agency one day, to see them on a one to one basis. So I did that and we took some photos and they thought that we should give it a try!

S.B.: Was it awkward at first?

J.G.: A bit. Because I wasn’t such an outgoing person I suppose, and all of a sudden you have all of these people watching you and taking pictures of you..

S.B.: I can imagine.. but do you believe that modeling changed you a bit, in any way? Do you now eat healthier, take more care in how you dress, have different friends, or do you feel different, more confident perhaps?

J.G.: Yeah, I think it’s most in terms of my personality. And I’m really happy that I got into modeling because that’s what pushed me to come to Paris as well, as that was somewhere I could continue doing my modeling and studying at the same time.

S.B.: So what did you study?

J.G.: In Paris I went to high school and then in London I studied finance. And economics, as well.

S.B.: Wow.

J.G.: I guess I wasn’t believing too much in the modeling back then!

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S.B.: What do you think about the role of models in fashion? To me sometimes, they feel as even more relevant that the clothes in a way, they help convey a mood or an emotion, even giving the garments structure or purpose. What do you really like about it? It looks a bit like a performative art to me.

J.G.: I guess it is. I love the kind of exchange you could have between a model and a photographer. If both the model and the photographer are good. And you can achieve something really amazing.

S.B.: Did it happen to you?

J.G.: I worked with quite a few good photographers and I’m happy it happened because once you work with the good ones you realize what the difference is. But I’ve also worked with bad ones.

S.B.: Which is an experience as well.

J.G.: It’s an experience, and it teaches you a lot of things for sure, but it’s just so much better when you work with someone who really has got a vision and knows what a person is looking for.

S.B.: Modeling, and fashion in general, could be considered as the most competitive of creative arenas, quite brutal in a way, very promising but very demanding as well. Besides being beautiful, do you think there is a quality that a model should have, a behavior perhaps or an etiquette or discipline, that could help him being successful?

J.G.: I think it’s definitely a difficult industry and it’s an industry with a very fast turnover, especially for girls, more than for guys I guess. New models keep coming in everyday.

S.B.: But there are some models that stay though.

J.G.: Yes, absolutely. I think you need to keep your feet on the ground, you shouldn’t.. yes, you should take it seriously but it’s good to stay connected, not to get swallowed too much into that world.

S.B.: In the last decade we’ve seen models, especially female ones, getting very young, very boney, very masculine and recently, showing a slightly insolent attitude that we apparently found very attractive. What can you tell me about the male models industry instead? Have you noticed any prevailing trend or direction?

J.G.: It seems that it depends a bit on the city you’re in. The models in Milan are slightly different from the models in Paris, but I guess there is this tendency for girls to become more masculine and guys, not to become more feminine, but very skinny, like street boys.

S.B.: With tattoos or so.

J.G.: Yes, especially in London. Paris has still got its delicacy. It depends on the brand of course but the tendency is still there. Milan is different, a bit more muscular I suppose.

S.B.: Which city do you like better?

J.G.: I like Paris! For me anyway, is the city which works the best. I worked a bit in Milan, a bit in London..but this is my place.

S.B.: Diane told me that you’ve been modeling for a painter too. She’s doing a portrait of yours in London is that right? What is the main difference for you between modeling for a painter or for a photographer, in fashion or in fine arts?

J.G.: I met this artist, Lorna May Wadsworth, that’s her name. We ran into each other at a gallery in Eastland, and she asked if I would sit for her, which I agreed to and I went to her studio and we became very good friends at the end, because it’s such an intense experience. It’s not like a photo, which is taken in an instant, it’s a very long process.

S.B.: Would you like to keep doing that, working in fine arts too?

J.G.: I’d love to, I love doing that. It’s very different. It depends on the artist as well, but she paints from life, so  had to be sitting for her throughout the entire process, and that means five hours a day, for four or five days.. and it’s not always in an easy position, like the last one I did was with my head titled backwards and it really hurt!

S.B.: And where can we see these portraits?

J.G.: The one we did last time was for her next exhibition but she’s done other ones that are available on her website, and that were exhibited in the St. Martin in the Fields which is a church in Trafalgar Square. There was a exhibition called “Sacred or Profane” and she did that in conjunction with revealing an altar piece she’s done for a church.

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S.B.: Wonderful. Is there any other photographer, or painter, or a designer or another model perhaps, that you would really like to work with in the future?

J.G.: I guess being Danish I would love to work with Freya Beha..that could be interesting I think. And there are quite a few photographers too.

 

All paintings by Lorna May Wadsworth.

Later,

Silvia

 

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