Alek Wek
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| Alek Wek | |
|---|---|
 Alek Wek at the Red Collection 2007 for The Heart Truth campaign |
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| Birth name | Alek Wek |
| Date of birth | 16 April 1977 |
| Place of birth | Wau, Sudan |
| Height | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) |
| Hair color | Dark Brown |
| Eye color | Brown |
| Measurements | 34-23-34.5 (US) 86.5-58-88 |
| Dress size | 4 (US) |
| Agency | Storm Models, London |
Alek Wek (born 16 April 1977) is a Sudanese model who first appeared on the catwalks at the age of 18 in 1995, sparking a career lasting to date. She is from the Dinka ethnic group in the Sudan,1 but in 1991 she and some family members fled to Britain to escape the civil war in Sudan.2 She later moved to the United States.
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Early life
She was born the seventh of nine children in Wau in Southern Sudan in 1977. The exact date is unknown. When she was preparing to emigrate from Sudan, her mother picked the date April 16, which occurs in the rainy season during which she was born. She says her name means "Black Spotted Cow".3
Early career
Wek was discovered at an outdoor market in London in 1995 in Crystal Palace, south London,2 by a Models 1 scout. She first received attention when she appeared in the music video for "GoldenEye" by Tina Turner, in 1995 and from there entered the world of fashion as one of its top models. She was signed to Ford Models in 19961 and was also seen in the "Got 'Til It's Gone" music video by Janet Jackson that year. She was named "Model of the Year" in 1997 by MTV. She was the first African model to appear on the cover of Elle, also in 1997.
Advertising and catwalks
Amongst other things she has done advertisements for Issey Miyake, Moschino, Victoria's Secret and make-up company Clinique as well as walked the runway for high-profile fashion designers Shiatzy Chen, John Galliano, Chanel, Donna Karan, Calvin Klein, Jasper Conran5 and Ermanno Scervino. In walks for Christian Lacroix, she took the role of the bride on several occasions. In 2002 she made her acting debut in The Four Feathers as Sudanese princess Aquol.6
Herb Ritts photographed her for a 1999 calendar in a Joanne Gair body painting that was a highlight of Gair's first retrospective.7
Wek has also been a guest on both The Tyra Banks Show and The Janice Dickinson Modeling Agency.
Designer
Wek also designs a range of designer handbags called "Wek 1933", which are available throughout selected Selfridges department stores. The year refers to the year her father was born.8 Her inspiration for the designs came from the brass-clasp briefcase carried by her father.9
Campaigning
She is a member of the U.S. Committee for Refugees' Advisory Council10 and is helping to raise awareness about the situation in Sudan, as well as the plight of refugees worldwide. She can base this on her own experience as a refugee, fleeing the war in her country of birth.
She is a missionary for World Vision, an organisation which combats AIDS, an ambassador for Doctors Without Borders in Sudan, and devotes time to UNICEF.11
In 2007, she released an autobiography, entitled Alek: From Sudanese Refugee to International Supermodel, documenting her journey from a childhood of poverty in Sudan to the catwalks of Europe.12
References
- ^ a b Refugee from Sudan takes runways by storm
- ^ a b "BBC - Radio 4 Woman's Hour -Alek Wek". www.bbc.co.uk. http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/womanshour/01/2007_45_thu.shtml. Retrieved 2009-02-23.
- ^ "Tavis Smiley . Archives . Alek Wek . August 30, 2007". www.pbs.org. http://www.pbs.org/kcet/tavissmiley/archive/200708/20070830_wek.html. Retrieved 2009-02-23.
- ^ http://www.flickr.com/photos/spiritchasa/sets/72157594356958333/with/278715491/
- ^ Jasper Conran Spring/Summer 2009 Collection
- ^ The Four Feathers
- ^ Joanne Gair's designs on celebrities
- ^ "Couture carryall: fashion model Alek Wek designs luxury handbags". findarticles.com. http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1365/is_2_37/ai_n26981440. Retrieved 2009-02-23.
- ^ http://www.stevedow.com.au/Default.aspx?id=319
- ^ http://www.hellomagazine.com/profiles/alekwek/
- ^ http://www.askmen.com/celebs/women/model/alek-wek/index.html
- ^ Alek: From Sudanese Refugee to International Supermodel
External links
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