There are few connections between Terry Richardson and Canadians with original aspirations for dentistry besides Jessica Stam's pander-like stint atop a Mercedes in the new Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week campaign. The adored Manhattan-based top model was raised on a farm in Ontario before being discovered by an IMG scout en route home from Canada's Wonderland theme-park. She has since become Steven Meisel's muse, made the list of the world's 15 top-earning supermodels (according to Forbes) and the spokesperson for Marc Jacobs, Anna Sui, Giorgio Armani, Gucci, DKNY and Berlin Fashion Week. Here, Stam shares her insights into international style, Berlin's potential and the definition of "coolness."
Ana Finel Honigman: When did you first visit Berlin?
JS: I first visited Berlin when I was 17. I went for a fashion show.
AFH: What were your impressions or associations with Berlin before arriving here?
JS: I heard it was a very young, artistic city with beautiful parks.
AFH: How do you define "cool" or what constitutes "coolness" to you?
JS: Coolness is defined by being true to yourself .
AFH: Can you describe the thinking behind the Mercedes Benz Fashion Week ad?
JS: We wanted to associate the design of the Mercedes Benz to the feeling of adrenaline, sexiness and style.
AFH: Is there some plot-line or vibe you're embodying on that car?
JS: “Accelerate the Pulse”
AFH: How has modeling influenced your ideas about beauty and people's relationship with clothes?
JS: I think that fashion can be used as way of expressing not only your personality, but your emotion. For those reasons, fashion is a personal endeavor that is different for everyone.
AFH: What are your inspirations for your own design endeavors?
JS: I want to design things that my friends and I like to wear.
AFH: How has your upbringing influenced your experiences and success in fashion?
JS: Being close with my family has kept me grounded and growing up with chores on the farm made me no stranger to hard work.
AFH: What do you think are the most common and problematic mis-impressions that the general public has of models and the modeling industry?
JS: Where do I start...
AFH: Outside New York, Paris and London, which "fringe" city do you think has the most exciting fashion scene (no pressure to say "Berlin")?
JS: Berlin.
[Images by Maxime Ballesteros]
