David Agbodji

Oh I feel like a fool now I totally forgot they don't have mens division :lol:
I checked back at Request and he's still on the site so maybe I got my answer :blush:
 
GQ Spain March 2014
'AMERICAN GRAFFITI'

Ph: Giampaolo Sgura
Styling: Miguel Arnau



giampaolosgura.com
 
In Miami walking the Express show

YtBVKeNg.jpg


dCPjynnR.jpg


v2O5uQpa.jpg


exprunway.com
 
In our ongoing series Model in the Spotlight, we get up close and personal with the world's leading male models.
Fashion knows a good thing when it sees one, and David Agbodji is clearly a keeper. During his years in the industry, he's made his mark in a slew of editorials and campaigns—from Calvin Klein and D&G to Bottega Veneta and Dsquared2—while also proving his commercial appeal as a favorite over at Banana Republic and Express. The artistic Agbodji, who readily admits he decided to give modeling a try only after he saw the effect it had on women, has lately been demonstrating his talents behind the camera as well, shooting regularly for Flaunt and a number of other fashion magazines, with a distinctive vision he describes as "just do you."

Height: 6'1"

Hometown: New York City

Agency: Re:Quest Model Management

How were you discovered?
When I was in high school, people used to tell me to try modeling. We were in the Bronx, and Manhattan was like another country to us, but every time I came here, somebody would try to scout me, but I wasn't really interested. When I was in college, a good friend of mine had this clothing line and asked me to model in one of his fashion shows, and all the girls went mad. I only started modeling because of the girls, to be honest.

Did you expect back then that you would be modeling for so long?
Hell no, I thought this was going to be a two-year thing, then I was going to get out of school and get a real job. I didn't think I was going to do this for a living. I didn't think you could make a living out of this. But I like the fact that I had that naive approach to it, that I didn't think too much about it. I feel like if I had known what I know now, I would have put a lot more pressure on myself and I would have ****ed it up, so I think that naiveté helped a lot. Also, because I was so naive about it, I was interested in other things. I never planned on this as a source of income, so I was learning different skills. When I starting modeling and I started making money, I was very mad at myself because I was like, "I should've started when I was 15," but a couple of years down the line, I'm so happy I didn't. If I had started at 15, I would never have finished school and I would never have gone to college.

You grew up in Paris and then Moscow before moving to New York. Why did decide to come here?
Who doesn't want to come to New York? I always did some kind of art, and what my dad used to do, instead of giving us allowance, he told us that if we wanted money, we had to draw something and sell it to him. So from a very young age, I always felt that you could actually make money from art, and I'll always thank him for that. I always felt like I was going to do some kind of art, and my parents always knew that if I was going to do art, I'd be better off in New York.

What sort of art did you decide to study in school?
The one thing that I had to deal with in college was to learn not to be so influenced by other art. At the beginning, I was really into learning art history, but it's a thin line. It's important to know that stuff, to know what came before, but you can easily fall into the trap of reproducing that. Back in high school, I did more urban art, like graffiti mixed with comic-book heroes, then in college, I began doing more painting. And I hated photography when I was at school.

That's interesting, because you're doing so much photography now. How did that shift come about?
I started photography when I started modeling. Whenever I was working, I was always curious about why it took all these fancy cameras and lights to get pictures that weren't always that amazing. To be honest, I kind of looked down on photography, the way painters and other artists feel that it's just not art. That's how I felt about it, but now I disagree obviously. I started out shooting my girl, and then I understood there's a lot more to it. So that's how I got into it—I was talking **** about it, then I was like, let me find out for myself.

Now that you're focusing more on photography, do you try to learn from photographers that you work with as a model?
Picasso said that your style comes from your own imperfections. There's still a lot of things I don't know how to do, and that determines my style. Sometimes I'm very curious, and if I see something, I'll ask, and so far people have been happy to share. It's so much better than if I had to go to school for photography. I understand more, but I try not to reproduce what other people are doing, because I feel like we're supposed to be advancing the ideas, not just doing what's been done.

What would you be doing now if you weren't modeling?
I still don't know, some kind of art, obviously. I don't think I would be shooting if I weren't modeling, because that helped me discover photography, but definitely some kind of art. Everybody that I grew up with remembers me as the artist—I was always sketching, I was punished at school for drawing and not listening—so it was always going to be art. That's the main reason why I kept modeling after school as opposed to getting a real job. I knew I didn't want a nine-to-five, I just wanted to make some cash and do my own art.

What's the best piece of advice you've ever been given?
Just do your own thing. When I started shooting, I was told by everyone to pay attention to what's going on during shoots and learn from the magazines. Then I met Cliff Watts—a really good friend of mine, he's like my mentor—and he told me, "Don't look at magazines, just do you." His point was, we're all unique. Whatever you have to say, the way you say it, nobody can do that, only you can fill that void. That's what made me turn. Now I'm very experimental, I don't know what I'm going to shoot the next time. I might draw over it, it might be really simple, but it's true to how I feel. Once I heard that, it reminded me of how I felt before, and it made sense to me.
details.com
 
Paris born, New York based model David Agbodji has been modelling since 2007 and in that time has paved the way for a new wave of black models in fashion.

His big break came in June 2009 when he opened and closed the Calvin Klein Collection catwalk show. Since then David has become one of the busiest and most consistent show boys.

SS10 saw him land an iconic Calvin Klein campaign shot by Steven Klein followed by campaigns for Sean John (SS10), Calvin Klein again (FW10), cK One (SS11), D&G (FW11), Banana Republic (FW11), Bottega Veneta (SS12), Kenneth Cole (SS13) and Dsquared2 (FW13).

Editorial credits have included the likes of GQ Style, Surface, VMAN, Vogue Paris, 10 Men, Love, Numéro Homme, Arena Homme +, Hercules and many, many more!

Not just a handsome face, David is also a budding photographer and painter!

Birthplace: Paris
Ethnic Origin: Togolese
Nickname: Sooo many!
What’s your best feature: The scar under my left eye
Favourite grooming product: Japanese eye drops
Your favorite fragrance: Santal 33 by Le Labo
What’s been your most lavish purchase?: A fancy couch, I guess
Hobbies: Photography, painting, kickboxing
Fitness Regime: (Inappropriate)
What was the last movie you watched?: Robocop (for old times sake)
What was the last track you listened to on your iPod?: Black Hoodies by Style P
Do you have any Guilty Pleasures?: I’m sure I do but can’t think of any
What is your biggest fear?: That we were all wrong!
What is your dream country to visit?: Madagascar
If you were not modeling, what would you be doing?: Something fun and artsy
If you got to relive one day in your modeling career it would be…: Opening and closing CK show for first time would be cool
If you could be on the cover of any magazine, it would be: American Vogue just because they are so serious and only use women
What’s the funniest thing that has happened to you on a shoot?: Well this was when I was the photographer but we almost got shot and arrested by the NYPD because of the prop guns we were using on a shoot with Yuri Pleskun. It was only funny afterwards!
What was the last thing to make you cry?: I’m embarrassed to say but a movie that wasn’t even that sad
What’s your favorite fashion city and why?: For fashion I think London
Who are your idols?: The usual suspects, all the Mikes
What was the last dream you remember?: Something to do with the red light district and samurais? (I just made that up but it’s really the kind of random things I dream up usually)
One word to describe yourself: Red
Instagram handle: @davidagbodji
How much money would you need to shave your hair off? Not that much actually

Height: 6’1″ | 185cm
Waist: 30″ | 76cm
Shoe: 11 UK | 45 EU | 11.5 UK
Hair: Black
Eyes: Brown

LONDON: NEXT MODELS
NEW YORK: REQUEST MODEL MANAGEMENT
PARIS: SUCCESS MODELS
MILAN: I LOVE


ftape
 
A model walks the runway at the amfAR Inspiration Gala New York 2014 at The Plaza Hotel on June 10, 2014 in New York City. (June 9, 2014 - Source: Stephen Lovekin/Getty Images North America)
amfAR+Inspiration+Gala+Fashion+Show+R7VQPvf9WAtl.jpg
 
Made in Brazil
Models: Garrett Neff, Diego Fragoso, David Agbodji, Jae Yoo, Parker Hurley and Tobias Sørensen
St: Matthew Marden
Ph: Milan Vukmirovic









thefashionisto.com
 

Users who are viewing this thread

New Posts

Forum Statistics

Threads
212,595
Messages
15,190,517
Members
86,501
Latest member
Sandmangr
Back
Top
monitoring_string = "058526dd2635cb6818386bfd373b82a4"
<-- Admiral -->