FEATURED | JACOB BIRD PART I
Hailing from London, Jacob Bird is a model student in every sense of the word. Currently an undergraduate in Cambridge University reading music, the eloquent 19 year old was signed to Düsseldorf based agency, Tomorrow is Another Day in early August of this year. BITE gets up close with the fresh new face in a 3-part interview with portraits by Daniyel Lowden.
The classic question for a newcomer: how were you scouted? I was scouted in New York this summer. I was at the opening of a new Sephora shop on Broadway, waiting for Amanda Lepore to perform, and a guy came up to me and asked if I’d ever considered modelling before. I’d left my old agency when I started uni, but TIAD sounded really interesting, and they were more than happy to work around me studying, so I wanted to get involved.
What are some shows you’ve done in your first season (S/S 13) with TIAD? I did London Fashion Week when I was working with JW Anderson in A/W 11 with my former agency. The show itself was great fun, but it was amazing to see the whole creative process. I was in the studio with Jonathan for the three days before the show and seeing how he worked and how the collection came together was awesome.
So F/W 13 will be your first season with TIAD I’m assuming? Yes, the upcoming fashion week in january will be my first with TIAD.
Any memorable experiences you’d like to share? Definitely meeting Alber Elbaz at a casting for Paris Fashion Week. I’ve always loved Lanvin, and the brand and Alber are such French icons. I was really star-struck.
As travelling makes up a large part of your modelling experience, what are some cities you’d love to visit? I’m such a city boy - anywhere that’s cosmopolitan and artsy is perfect. New York has to be my favourite city so far, but I’d absolutely love to visit Tokyo. The youth culture and the fashion are so creative and diverse, and yet the city is still steeped in Japanese traditions and history. It sounds like the perfect mix.
Are you currently doing anything else besides modelling? At the moment I’ve just started my second year of uni, reading Music at Cambridge, so during term time I’m pretty tied up with work. Around work I try to do the odd bit of journalism for the fashion section of Varsity, the student run independent Cambridge newspaper, and helping out with the shoots. It’s great being around such creative and driven people, and the shoots often come out brilliantly, especially considering there’s a new one each week and it’s all done alongside their degrees.
