Miss Fame Joins Jury At Elite Model Look World Final 2019 In Paris
At the Elite Model Look World Final, fashion and beauty industry insiders sit on the jury alongside directors from across the Elite Model World agencies. For 2019, model and drag queen Miss Fame joined the jury to help choose the Top 15 and Digital Creators who won representation by the model network.
Miss Fame, whose real name is Kurtis Dam-Mikkelsen was born in San LuisObispo, CA, worked as male model before training as makeup artist with industry titan Pat McGrath. In New York, he began performing as a drag artist under the name Miss Fame, whose unique and glamorous aesthetic caught the eye of fashion photographers. She became the first drag artist to feature in an editorial for Vogue Germany and went on to star in V Magazine, LOVE and Elle. This year, she launched a beauty brand Miss Fame Beauty.
At the Elite Model Look World Final, we caught up with Miss Fame to ask what she thought of the new generation of model and digital creator talent, what she believes it will take to shake up the industry, and what she’s working on next!
What did you think of the Elite Model Look World Final?
I think it's really special to celebrate talent, beauty and bring all of these incredible cultures together. And the diversity is so significant. I love seeing these models from China, from the Dominican Republic, from the Czech Republic, from the United States, from all over Europe. That is the beauty industry working for us. We need to keep bringing everyone together. So bravo!
The fashion and beauty industries are changing - what change do you want to see happen in future?
I think the future is happening as we speak! I'm a part of that conversation. My work is to keep that movement happening. It's going to take more work. I'm at the beginning and I'm opening that door as I know I'm contributing. It takes a lot of dedication and it means that not everyone's gonna understand it. But inevitably, we're having that breakthrough happen.
Inclusivity can’t be a passing trend – what do we need to do to make the new mood of diversity last?
In order to keep that momentum going, we need allies. We need the industry, designers, brands, all of the above to be willing to say, "we're gonna give you a campaign, you're worth it. Your beauty is valid here". And it doesn't always have to be a check-a-box male, female, gay, straight. You can push all parameters to coexist and say, we are celebrating everyone. Inclusivity is so key.
You have so many exciting projects right now! What are you looking forward to most?
I'm here in Europe to create editorial stories and build relationships with campaigns and the beauty industry. So right now, I feel like I'm in this momentous and magnetic incline. I'm really excited to share in 2020 some of the projects I'm working on today. That's really all I can say - I have to be really careful - I don't want to burn any bridges! Miss Fame Beauty, which I launched through September. I can't wait to get more products out there for all my fans and the industry at large, and just the world I love to contribute and change the dialogue.
