McKenna Hellam
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McKenna Hellam Is a Face to Watch
SEPTEMBER 11, 2016 9:44 PM
by JANELLE OKWODU
It’s a modeling rite of passage to leave home in search of your big break, but for McKenna Hellam, the plucky newcomer who just walked Prabal Gurung and Alexander Wang, heading from Georgia to New York City meant leaving behind a couple of important pals—ones who couldn’t exactly call her up when they missed her. “I was able to have my horses at my house growing up,” says Hellam. An avid rider with a passion for animals, Hellam’s social accounts are half selfies, half photos of puppies, ponies, and all things cute, but when it comes time to step on the runway, she’s all business. Catching up with Hellam via email pre–Prabal Gurung, she seemed more than ready for the rigors of NYFW. “[During castings] I walk an average of about 7 miles a day and climb 20 flights of stairs. Your day can be planned when you wake up, but at the end of the day that’s likely changed altogether—flexibility is the key.”
Hellam wouldn’t have pursued her catwalk ambitions if it weren’t for her sister, Kaitlyn, who took up modeling in her teens, before eventually choosing to pursue a career as a pharmacist. “I started because I wanted to be just like my big sister,” says Hellam. “I grew up watching her, and like any other annoying little sister I tried to mirror her.” Though she hoped to follow in her sibling’s fashion footsteps, Hellam admits that she wasn’t exactly a clotheshorse. “I was more interested in being at the barn, and playing soccer and volleyball,” says Hellam, whose athleticism adds her to the list of modeling’s former jocks. Balancing test shoots and travel with an accelerated program in high school, Hellam was also determined to maintain her honor-student GPA while learning the ropes of the industry. “One thing that people might be surprised to find out about me is that I have worked hard in school,” says Hellam. “I graduated this summer, completing high school two years early!”
Walking Wang meant Hellam underwent a Guido Palau makeover, her long waves chopped into a curly bob. Unlike most of the cast, she didn’t make the switch to platinum, but doing her first show was transformative nonetheless. “We talked about it many times in the weeks before coming up here and even laughed about getting my hair cut, and now it’s happened,” says Hellam. “The entire experience has been amazing! My first Fashion Week, first casting, and first show, and it was all for him.” Holding her own opposite runway regulars like Hanne Gaby Odiele and Lexi Boling provided a thrill, as did the party atmosphere backstage. “Everyone there is so friendly and happy and upbeat—their energy and passion were amazing.”
Eager to walk more shows, meet more people, and potentially work with a few of her favorite photographers, Hellam is looking forward to the road ahead. “Working Fashion Week has been both exciting and exhausting—you never know what’s coming until it happens!” Good thing she had the whole month ahead of her.
http://www.vogue.com/13475722/mckenna-hellam-new-face-alexander-wang-prabal-gurung/
SEPTEMBER 11, 2016 9:44 PM
by JANELLE OKWODU
It’s a modeling rite of passage to leave home in search of your big break, but for McKenna Hellam, the plucky newcomer who just walked Prabal Gurung and Alexander Wang, heading from Georgia to New York City meant leaving behind a couple of important pals—ones who couldn’t exactly call her up when they missed her. “I was able to have my horses at my house growing up,” says Hellam. An avid rider with a passion for animals, Hellam’s social accounts are half selfies, half photos of puppies, ponies, and all things cute, but when it comes time to step on the runway, she’s all business. Catching up with Hellam via email pre–Prabal Gurung, she seemed more than ready for the rigors of NYFW. “[During castings] I walk an average of about 7 miles a day and climb 20 flights of stairs. Your day can be planned when you wake up, but at the end of the day that’s likely changed altogether—flexibility is the key.”
Hellam wouldn’t have pursued her catwalk ambitions if it weren’t for her sister, Kaitlyn, who took up modeling in her teens, before eventually choosing to pursue a career as a pharmacist. “I started because I wanted to be just like my big sister,” says Hellam. “I grew up watching her, and like any other annoying little sister I tried to mirror her.” Though she hoped to follow in her sibling’s fashion footsteps, Hellam admits that she wasn’t exactly a clotheshorse. “I was more interested in being at the barn, and playing soccer and volleyball,” says Hellam, whose athleticism adds her to the list of modeling’s former jocks. Balancing test shoots and travel with an accelerated program in high school, Hellam was also determined to maintain her honor-student GPA while learning the ropes of the industry. “One thing that people might be surprised to find out about me is that I have worked hard in school,” says Hellam. “I graduated this summer, completing high school two years early!”
Walking Wang meant Hellam underwent a Guido Palau makeover, her long waves chopped into a curly bob. Unlike most of the cast, she didn’t make the switch to platinum, but doing her first show was transformative nonetheless. “We talked about it many times in the weeks before coming up here and even laughed about getting my hair cut, and now it’s happened,” says Hellam. “The entire experience has been amazing! My first Fashion Week, first casting, and first show, and it was all for him.” Holding her own opposite runway regulars like Hanne Gaby Odiele and Lexi Boling provided a thrill, as did the party atmosphere backstage. “Everyone there is so friendly and happy and upbeat—their energy and passion were amazing.”
Eager to walk more shows, meet more people, and potentially work with a few of her favorite photographers, Hellam is looking forward to the road ahead. “Working Fashion Week has been both exciting and exhausting—you never know what’s coming until it happens!” Good thing she had the whole month ahead of her.
http://www.vogue.com/13475722/mckenna-hellam-new-face-alexander-wang-prabal-gurung/
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