Du Juan Editorial for Italian Vogue, September 2006

I found this beautiful editorial of Du Juan for Italian Vogue, September 2006 shot by Peter Lindbergh in Las Vegas. At first glance, I thought it was done by Laurie Bartley whose photos are always saturated with intense colors.

Du Juan looks amazing here, especially in Photo 1. She does that pout better than anyone else in the business. Being the #1 Asian model in the world, Du Juan has done it all...well, almost. She has appeared in ad campaigns for some of the best designers in the world. Her first major ad campaign was for YSL in Spring/Summer 2006 shot by Juergen Teller. That was followed the next season with three major ad campaigns for Louis Vuitton (shot by Mert & Marcus), Roberto Cavalli, and Swarovski. Along the way, she added more appearances to her coffers for mass retailers like GAP, JCrew and Benetton. Then in Fall 2008/Winter 2009, she scored another trifecta of campaigns with appearances in Giorgio Armani, David Yurman and H&M.

In terms of magazine covers, she is the first and only Asian model to have graced the cover of Paris Vogue (October 2005). On top of that, there are dozens of other covers for Vogue (China, Taiwan), Harper's Bazaar (Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia), Elle (Hong Kong, Singapore, China), L'Officiel (Hong Kong), Marie Claire (China), French Revue de Modes, French Jalouse and many more that I haven't documented here. What next? Will Anna Wintour have the guts to put Du Juan on the cover of US Vogue? Will Italian Vogue be doing an ALL ASIAN issue?

But with Liu Wen, the up-and-coming Chinese model nipping at her heels, Du Juan days as the top Chinese model may be numbered. But she has paved the way for many more Asian models to take her place.

Model: Du Juan
Editorial: One Night in Las Vegas
Magazine: Italian Vogue, September 2008
Photographer: Peter Lindbergh

Source: FotoDecadent

Xiaoyi Dai Magazine Covers

First off, I would like to say THANK YOU to Sabrina Dong from Beijing, China for e-mailing these high quality scans (the first three photos) of Xiaoyi Dai's magazine covers. Secondly, I will including the names of the designers/labels whose clothes are worn on the covers together with the other credits at the bottom of each photo.

Now let's talk about the magazine covers. I am so in love with the covers for (Singapore) Her World, September 2008 and (Hong Kong) Harper's Bazaar, February 2008. I even love the pink font used on the title of Her World magazine. The dress in Harper's Bazaar is awesome on Xiaoyi Dai. Does anyone know who is the designer of that red number?

The (Singapore) Style cover, on the other hand, is a little too polished and PhotoShopped for my taste. It isn't as original as the other covers, which is a surprise because (Singapore) Style is supposedly one of the best fashion magazines in Asia. I don't particularly like the (Singapore) Female magazine cover either. The girls were styled to resemble YSL's Fall 2008/Winter 2009 runway look while wearing (surprise!!) YSL -- how predictable is that?

I'm glad Xiaoyi Dai is getting the exposure she deserves. Let's hope the work in Asia will translate to bigger and better things out West.

Model: Xiaoyi Dai
Attire: Prada, Fall 2008/Winter 2009
Magazine: Singapore Her World, September 2008
Photographer: Unknown

Model: Xiaoyi Dai
Attire: Stefano Pilati for YSL, Fall 2008/Winter 2009
Magazine: Singapore Style, October 2008
Photographer: Unknown

Model: Xiaoyi Dai & Unknown Model

Attire: Stefano Pilati for YSL, Fall 2008/Winter 2009
Magazine: Singapore Female, September 2008
Photographer: Unknown

Model: Xiaoyi Dai
Attire: Marc Jacobs, Spring 2008?
Magazine: Hong Kong Harper's Bazaar, February 2008
Photographer: Unknown

Source: Photos 1-3 from Sabrina Dong and Photo 4 from Ryan Elite Models

Han Jin Editorial for Another Magazine, Fall 2008/Winter 2009

Han Jin from South Korea has been the dominant Asian model on the runways of New York, Milan and Paris since her debut in Fall 2006/Winter 2007. She usually averaged over 50 shows per season (excluding the extra shows she does during couture and resort weeks), which translates to over 100 shows per year. During the Fall 2007/Winter 2008 season alone, she appeared in 64 shows. That is quite a feat for any model, not just for an Asian girl. [Note: Liu Wen of China did more shows than Han Jin this season.]

Han Jin's superstar status on the runways, however has not gained her much editorial work or ad campaign in New York, Paris or Milan. She is, nonetheless extremely popular in South Korea where she appears regularly in Korea Vogue and Korea Harper's Bazaar. Outside of South Korea, her work is harder to come by.

In the last seven seasons since her ascension to the top of the modeling world, Han Jin has booked only three international ad campaigns. The first was a solo effort for Anna Molinari in Fall 2006/Winter 2007 shot by Craig McDean. That ad campaign was hideous and a disaster; it almost destroyed her career. The following season, Han Jin booked an ad campaign with Italian mass retailer, Benetton shot by David Sims. In the ad, she was covered from head to toe in a giant hooded parka that obscured her face and concealed her identity. Her final international ad campaign was for Moschino in Fall 2007/Spring 2008 shot by Peter Lindberg. Although the campaign was beautifully done, it rarely appeared in magazines. Furthermore, there were six other Asian models in that single shot campaign.

So what went wrong? How does a beautiful girl who ruled the runways ended up with so few major work outside of Korea? I think part of the problem is that Han Jin was not getting adequent representation (in my opinion) by her agency outside of Korea. If she had signed with better agencies like Elite or IMG, her career would have taken a more successful turn.

Despite the lack of international ad campaigns (that's where the money really is, folks), Han Jin is still doing extremely well, thank you very much. Her runway appearances alone probably earned her an estimated half a million US dollars per year for the last three years. She also has numerous projects (a reality TV show) and ad campaigns in South Korea that will keep her living well for a very long time.

Here is Han Jin in an untitled editorial for the British publication, Another Magazine (Fall/Winter 2008) shot by Craig McDean. This 24-page editorial stars 11 different models and Han Jin is on the first and only page. Unfortunately (AGAIN), she was plastered with so much make-up that it rendered her almost unrecognizable.

Model: Han Jin

Editorial: Untitled

Magazine: (British) Another Magazine, Fall 2008/Winter 2009

Photographer: Craig McDean

Stylist: Marie Amelie Sauve

Source: Alien Sex Fiend @ tFs

Xiaoyi Dai Test Shots for Elite Models, Fall 2008

Xiaoyi Dai is undoubtedly my favorite new model of the season. Okay, she isn't new-new because she was signed with NEXT Models in 2007 and that relationship went nowhere. But since Elite Models took her under their wings a couple months ago, she's starting to book more jobs here in the US and in Asia. She even has a profile on New York Magazine's model list.

Xiaoyi Dai has a new cover in the October 2008 issue of Singapore Style and I'm hunting high and low for a good quality scan of the photo. Does anyone know someone who knows someone else who has a copy of that magazine?

Here are some AMAZING test shots of Xiaoyi Dai done a couple months ago for Elite Models. She looks spectacular!! Did I say, she's my favorite new model this season? Oh yeah, I did.

Model: Xiaoyi Dai
Photographer: Unknown

Source: Elite

Eugenia Mandzhieva, Du Juan & Hye Park Editorial for Time Magazine's Style & Design Issue, Fall 2008

Time Magazine recently released its annual Style & Design issue and included in this year's compilation is an article on the emergence Asian models in the international fashion scene. An editorial (actually, it's just one photo) that accompanied the article features Eugenia Mandzhieva, Du Juan and Hye Park in white dresses and gold sandals. There is also a compendium video on Time Magazine's website, Time Video, which has better photos/images than the one published in the magazine.

Eugenia Mandzhieva, one of my favorite Asian models, is actually of Russian nationality. Despite her amazing cat-like look, her career has not matched those of other top Asian models. I believe this is, in part due to the fact that Eugenia does not have China Vogue or Korea Vogue backing her career like those of Du Juan and Hye Park respectively. Du Juan is a regular on China Vogue and Hye Park is on almost every issue of Korea Vogue. The support and media exposure they get from those magazines helped push their careers up to the next level. In contrast, Eugenia Mandzhieva has only appeared on the cover of Russian Vogue once and that was in June 2007.

Eugenia Mandzhieva's most significant exposure has been on the runways of New York, Milan and Paris. Unfortunately, it has not translated to major success in terms of editorial pages or/and ad campaigns. Most of her print work has been for foreign publications like China Vogue (March 2008) and Korea Vogue (??). Lately, she has also been doing a lot of catalog shoots and appearing in ad campaigns in the US, specifically for SimplyVera by Vera Wang (Fall 2007) and Uniqlo (Fall 2008).

N.B.: The full text of the Time Magazine article is posted on this companion blog, Fashion Intellect.

Models: Eugenia Mandzhieva, Du Juan & Hye Park
Editorial: Color Lines on the Catwalk
Magazine: Time Magazine, Style & Design Issue, Fall 2008
Photographer: George Lange

Source: George Lange Photo

Hyoni Kang Editorial for New York Times' Style Magazine, Fall 2008

Hyoni Kang, who won the Supermodel of the World competition in January 2008, has had quite year (with 3 more months to go) so far. After signing with the competition sponsor Ford Models, her career took off like a race horse out of the gates. She quickly scored a magazine cover on Korea Vogue for April 2008 (with Hye Park) followed by numerous editorial work in catalogs and magazines in New York and South Korea.

Hyoni Kang's most significant success to date, undoubtedly is on the runway where she booked more shows than most runway veterans at the recent New York Fashion Week. All in all, she walked in 17 shows including top labels like Michael Kors, DKNY and 3.1 Philip Lim. She also opened two shows (Chris Han and Travolta) and closed one (Nanette Lapore), which was a huge coup for a new girl in New York.

This editorial, for New York Times' Style Magazine, Fall 2008, is one of her best so far, in my opinion. The energy of the models is amazing and the styling is top-notch. Despite having to share the pages with other models, Hyoni Kang really shines here. I especially love her poses in Photos #1, 2 and 4.

Model: Hyoni Kang & other models

Editorial:The Strip - Pickup Pix

Magazine: T Magazine (New York Times Supplement), Fall 2008

Photographer: Robert Wyatt

Source: NYTimes

Gwen Lu Editorial for French Numéro #15, Spring/Summer 2008

Greg Kadel is one of my favorite photographers so I was glad to find out that Gwen Lu had shot with him for this editorial in (French) Numéro #15, Spring/Summer 2008. Numéro may not be as commercially recognized as Vogue, but it is still one of the more interesting and creative magazines, beloved by many fashion insiders. So for Gwen Lu to appear in (French) Numéro is a big step forward for her and her career.

The simplicity of this shoot and its focus on the clothes make it a huge departure from Gwen's previous work. Makeup artists and stylists love to use a lot of makeup on Asian models -- it's a trend that I have noticed lately. I don't know if it's because Asian facial features are softer and less distinct that make them good canvases for makeup OR they need a lot of makeup to bring the features out in photos. Regardless, the natural look here is superb.

Model: Gwen Lu
Editorial: Nomade
Magazine: (French) Numéro #15, Spring/Summer 2008
Photographer: Greg Kadel
Fashion Editor: Bill Mullen

Source: Elite Models