#StaySafeAtHomeWith ... Arthur Gosse

Paris, 5 May 2020

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Who are you (the long answer, no cheating by just giving your name!) and what is your profession (as in, how do you define it, rather than just the job title it has)?

I’m a very patient person, what helps me a lot in modeling. My job is to listen and understand the people I’m working with before just posing in front of a camera. Than I try my best to help them make what they want to create.

Who would you confine with?

With nobody, hahaha! Most of my friends work at the hospital, so I don’t think it would be a good idea.

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What's your work-from-home style?

I do different types of art (personal only for now), I do sports, and I fix things or clean. There’s always something to do when you think about it.

Tell us something about yourself that isn't on your resume (a secret skill, a hobby, a previous job or fun fact about you).

I love crêpes !

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 What's the first place you'd want to go when it's safe again to travel and go out?

Cuba. But I think going back on set would be smarter.

Who is in your fantasy Zoom party (Skype or FaceTime)?

FaceTime with my family. And we do that on Facebook with my old friends.

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Arthur is represented by Unit Model Management

interviewed by Lily Templeton

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captured by Allan Hamitouche

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Production by Michaël Marson

Casting director William Lhoest at WL Casting

#StaySafeAtHomeWith ... Pablo Fernandez

Barcelona, 16 April 2020

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Who are you (the long answer, no cheating by just giving your name!) and what is your profession (as in, how do you define it, rather than just the job title it has)?

Hello, my name is Pablo. I’m 19, I’m 1m88 and I’m a teenager from Granada who loves sneakers, nature and discovering new cultures. I was scouted 2 years ago when walking down the street and I have been modeling ever since. That means I have been traveling a lot, meeting really cool people and working for the most amazing brands.

Who would you confine with?

I’m pretty good being alone listening to music, reading, watching movies, playing video games, … The perks of being a model: you get used to enjoy your own company. 

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What's your work-from-home style?

Lately I have been doing a few Q&A videos for my agency’s Instagram, some pictures through webcam like these ones and I’m also editing videos I had from my last trips with dope music to upload soon… Hope you like them!

Tell us something about yourself that isn't on your resume (a secret skill, a hobby, a previous job or fun fact about you).

My mother is Polish, so I can speak Polish perfectly. I’m also studying Russian. In the future I would like to become a great businessman so I’m really interested in learning languages.

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 What's the first place you'd want to go when it's safe again to travel and go out?

I would love to go back to the French Alps. I went there for a job last year, a Hermès campaign, and I fell in love with that place. Cannot wait to visit it again.

Who is in your fantasy Zoom party (Skype or FaceTime)?

My friends are the ones I would choose for every party, virtual or real. I wouldn’t change them for anybody or anything else.

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Pablo is represented by Uno Models

interviewed by Lily Templeton

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captured by Allan Hamitouche

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Production by Michaël Marson

Casting director William Lhoest at WL Casting

#StaySafeAtHomeWith ... João Knorr

New York, 19 April 2020

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Who are you (the long answer, no cheating by just giving your name!) and what is your profession (as in, how do you define it, rather than just the job title it has)?

I actually would say I’m still trying to find out who I really am. As far as I know I’m just a kid born in a little village in the far south of Brazil who’s led an amazingly cool and humble life in a small town. I didn’t like going to school but I had a lot of friends there, I loved playing sports. I’ve always been extremely good at all kinds of sports. The reason why I first left my hometown Panambi was to play tennis in the selection and then, 2 years after, I moved to the capital to play tennis in one of the best teams of Brazil. And that’s why I became a model; I was just doing my thing, playing after a ball, when I got scouted and the fashion world opened up for me (another super long story). But who I am right now, that is still being processed... maybe next time.

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 Who would you confine with?

My family of course, that unfortunately I’m not able to see because of this sad epidemic.

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 What's your work-from-home style?

I would say my work-from-home style is working a little bit on myself; spirit, mind, and health since living in Brooklyn by yourself in this quarantine is not that easy. But I find ways to make it funny. I try to read about a million different things, just to inform myself a little bit. I think it’s a good thing to be an informed person. I also try to study some other things I feel could help me in the future. I try to meditate when I feel too stressed out, or I call my old friends I haven’t called in a while. Just to see how their life’s going, which is something I really recommend; I feel so good talking to old friends on FaceTime. And of course I play videogames all the time; I had to find a way to be competitive since I can’t play soccer, volleyball or tennis in my little apartment.

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 Tell us something about yourself that isn't on your resume (a secret skill, a hobby, a previous job or fun fact about you).

I love cooking but I’m the worst doing it. I try hard though, and I eat the exact same oatmeal with banana, strawberries, blueberries, peanut butter, etc. since I’m 14 years old. 

What's the first place you'd want to go when it's safe again to travel and go out?

I feel even anxious to answer this. I will go straight to my family of course. Back to my first home, to my brother Marco of 14 years old and mom and dad, Fabiane and Eduardo. 

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Who is in your fantasy Zoom party (Skype or FaceTime)?

I guess that’s a fantasy. I can’t say it, maybe I could get in trouble.

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João is represented by Next

interviewed by Lily Templeton

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captured by Allan Hamitouche

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Production by Michaël Marson

Casting director William Lhoest at WL Casting

#StaySafeAtHomeWith ... Najib Abdi

Paris, 13th April 2020

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Who are you (the long answer, no cheating by just giving your name!) and what is your profession (as in, how do you define it, rather than just the job title it has)?

I’m Najib from Somalia, but I moved when I was 15 years old. I lived in Italy as a refugee and then moved to Paris. I actually don’t have any professional skills but I work different jobs like sewing tutorials, at a restaurant, … and now I work at the same time with my designer friends, just to learn something.

Who would you confine with?

With my brothers and some of my friends.

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 What's your work-from-home style?

I wake up early in the morning. During these days I draw a lot whilst watching Netflix and cooking.

Tell us something about yourself that isn't on your resume (a secret skill, a hobby, a previous job or fun fact about you).

I do photography and dance, and I’m interested in all things vintage.

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What's the first place you'd want to go when it's safe again to travel and go out?

The first place I’d want to go to when this is over would be Italy I think.

Who is in your fantasy Zoom party (Skype or FaceTime)?

I think it was last week, me and my friends did a home-drink over Skype. Really, it was a lot of fun.

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Najib is represented by The Claw Models

interviewed by Lily Templeton

&

captured by Allan Hamitouche

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Production by Michaël Marson

Casting director William Lhoest at WL Casting

#StaySafeAtHomeWith ... Oliver Meisner Thrane

Copenhagen, 8th April 2020

Who are you (the long answer, no cheating by just giving your name!) and what is your profession (as in, how do you define it, rather than just the job title it has)?

I’m a tall curious guy who loves to explore both my mind, landscapes, cuisines and environments of all sorts. Throughout my upbringing I’ve always had an urge to cross some lines and seek towards the opposite from what my classmates, brother and like-aged people did. I feel these environments and subcultures I’ve been a part of, have so far made me a more open-minded person and make me see the best in a person no matter who, what or where they come from.

The clichés of models becoming photographers is a thing. And yes, now I’ve become one of them. Two years ago, I started assisting a Danish fashion photographer for a year, and at some point, I just had enough of fashion since it became everything around me. Not that I don’t like fashion, but the type of shoots we did and brands we worked with were very uninspiring and tiring. My desire and joy for photography was still there, so I started at Copenhagen Film and Photography school, and that has made my skills and visions within photography more clear. I really love the documenting aspect of photography and my skill is the access to people. The past year I’ve made 2 photo books; one about Beirut’s many-faceted lives in the ongoing revolution and one about my hometown city mall.

 Who would you confine with?

That’s a secret.

What's your work-from-home style?

Definitely not solving a puzzle nor reading a book. Focus and I aren’t doing well in that matter. But the first 10 days of the lockdown, I isolated myself with my best friend In a shipyard, where we worked on this lifelong project, our old wooden ship from 1952. 

Now my school course has reopened over Zoom, and I’m quite excited for the photography projects they will give us and in which way they can be solved. Maybe I’ll be inspired by this shoot ;)

 Tell us something about yourself that isn't on your resume (a secret skill, a hobby, a previous job or fun fact about you).

I can blow spit bubbles and for sure knock you out with a headkick. I love trance and not so much cops. I serve some really fine fish tacos and also vegan ones if you like ;) 

What's the first place you'd want to go when it's safe again to travel and go out?

As soon as all this is safe I’m going to visit my grandmothers. After that, my feet are itching to drive around Italy eating pizza and drinking Negronis or sail around Denmark visiting all the beautiful small islands. I’ll probably do both.

 Who is in your fantasy Zoom party (Skype or FaceTime)?

My grandmothers and all their grandkids In the same ZoomParty. But unfortunately, they don’t own computers or smartphones nor do they have the technical skill to set it up. But the level of confusion and happiness they would feel would be priceless to witness.

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Oliver is represented by Nisch Management

interviewed by Lily Templeton

&

captured by Allan Hamitouche

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Production by Michaël Marson

Casting director William Lhoest at WL Casting

#StaySafeAtHomeWith ... Thomas Riguelle

The Hague, 9th April 2020

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Who are you (the long answer, no cheating by just giving your name!) and what is your profession (as in, how do you define it, rather than just the job title it has)?

I am Thomas Riguelle, I was born in Ghent, Belgium and then moved with my mom to The Hague, The Netherlands at an early age. My father stayed in Belgium, where I’ve been coming and going. He’s a musician and my mom is a translator (a really good one). I’m a very individual personality for better and for worse and I do many things. Most people know me from my modeling services.. I see modeling as something that can be very much like performance, and I love it when it becomes that! And honestly it always has something of it for sure … but it can also be very automated, tiring and stiff if you will. But you know it’s also a job at the end of the day, it can’t be fun 24/7.

Asides from modeling I’m heavily active collecting music and making music and DJ’ing and all sorts of other stuff. I work on a voluntary basis in a record store every so often In The Hague - shout out to @3345_thehague - and most of my future ambitions are music related for sure ;) Last but not least I’ve been skating for about 12 years or something and, finally, I just kinda love getting involved with all sorts of things; film, art, photography, etc.

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Who would you confine with?

Depends for how long :p

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 What's your work-from-home style?

I reorganized all my records day in day out for a week or two, then I started making music and now I’m selecting records for a few mixtapes. I guess my work from home style is busy and until late hours, like usually actually ahah, but normally I can’t do a lot of projects like these because I travel a lot and not everything is possible on the road. So yeah, that’s something great :D

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 Tell us something about yourself that isn't on your resume (a secret skill, a hobby, a previous job or fun fact about you).

Well fun fact: I was a horrible student. I got kicked out of school 3 times during high school. Eventually I stopped going really … but then later I did finish something after all. But so, yeah, during those years I was exploring a lot, doing young people’s stuff, good stuff, bad stuff, … and I learned a lot.

So No! I barely have anything on my résumé really ahah, but a lot of amazing times :)

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 What's the first place you'd want to go when it's safe again to travel and go out?

Got this all figured out, don’t worry haha.

First Paris back to my lover and my actual home. Then to New York and Canada for work and hopefully seeing some friends. Then Copenhagen if the timing is right (mid summer is best!) and then Asia half for work half to be a tourist.

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 Who is in your fantasy Zoom party (Skype or FaceTime)?

Mike Tyson, Mark Zuckerberg, Dennis Rodman, the president of North Korea, Ricardo Villalobos, Peter Wright (the darter), Gemma Collins, Nardwuar, and of course Eddy & Sandor (two specific friends of mine that really need to be there).

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Thomas is represented by KNOWN Model Management

interviewed by Lily Templeton

&

captured by Allan Hamitouche

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Production by Michaël Marson

Casting director William Lhoest at WL Casting

#StaySafeAtHomeWith ... Akeem Osborne

London, 8th April 2020

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Who are you (the long answer, no cheating by just giving your name!) and what is your profession (as in, how do you define it, rather than just the job title it has)?

I am a Model, YouTuber and actor. I define a model as someone who works with a lot of brands/clients. I define a YouTuber as someone who makes videos for their fan base and posts them on YouTube. I define an actor as someone who does a lot of casting trying to get roles in plays or movies.

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 Who would you confine with?

My family and my girlfriend.

What's your work-from-home style?

Work from home involves live streaming on Twitch, editing YouTube videos and managing social media.

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 Tell us something about yourself that isn't on your resume (a secret skill, a hobby, a previous job or fun fact about you).

Secret skill: I can do the Rubik’s cube. I also enjoy cooking and gaming, and a lot of Netflix. 

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What's the first place you'd want to go when it's safe again to travel and go out?

The first place I’d like to travel to is just anywhere outside, maybe some restaurants and down to London and just get back to working.

Who is in your fantasy Zoom party (Skype or FaceTime)?

As I’m staying at my girlfriends’ I am only staying in contact with my family members, like my dad and grandparents, basically my whole family.

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Akeem is represented by Select Model London

interviewed by Lily Templeton

&

captured by Allan Hamitouche

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Production by Michaël Marson

Casting director William Lhoest at WL Casting

#StaySafeAtHomeWith ... James Crewe

Halfway between the Essex countryside and Coruscant, 10th April 2020

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Who are you (the long answer, no cheating by just giving your name!) and what is your profession (as in, how do you define it, rather than just the job title it has)?

As a kid at school I was heavily into David Bowie and the series of fantasy worlds he created so taking from that coupled with as children naturally do; I embellished the truth. I’d answer that I was the love child of Diana, Princess of Wales and David Bowie’s Thin White Duke. I believed it soooooo much - to some degree, I’m still eager for it to be true. I lived that fantasy turning like a cat around school with my head so high. It was an incendiary act, but I was relentless.

I often mumble to myself: “I wonder if that was the catalyst,” where I find myself now? I was about to start work on an exciting film before the lockdown; Covid-19 dependant, hopefully that picks up once more. I'm eager to start playing a character on the big screen, it seems the natural path from previous choices I have made whilst modelling with the likes of Alasdair McClellan, Sølve Sundsbø and Tim Walker. Helping these photographers in finding a character, both vivid and breathing, for their photos is too much fun and truly an extension of my fantasy.

Otherwise, on any given day, you can find me, face down in eBay’s search engine, PayPal 1 touching, vintage magazines for research as well as trawling through online archives for anything that sparks my interest, usually gun toting blonde dykes, Maserati boomerangs, and YouTube clips of interviews with David Bowie being fractious.

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Who would you confine with?

Currently, I am with my family and my baby girl Mitzi Chun-Li (an English Pointer), who simply can do no wrong in my eyes, even after she’s chewed her 7th shoe this week. I’m quite a solitary boy, so the idea of being confined with other people detached from my family unit fills me with trepidation - what if we argued? So I guess I’m quite content with being in my current situation.

However, I have quickly discovered that I am quarantining myself with my multiple personalities shifting through numerous gears within the hour; I’m gradually getting to know the minutiae of their quirks. I have successfully beaten off my Gwyneth Paltrow's Goop persona, practicing soothing meditation, chanting chakras for acceptance and knocking back spinach and flax smoothies. It was never going to be long term GP, sorry. This morning, my favourite persona, Linda Hamilton’s Sarah Connor in Terminator: Judgement Day, which appears at the most Darwinian occasions; Sainsbury’s. Granted there is an apocalyptic air in the world, but I’m not losing now, there’s so much to achieve. Then there’s the over-cautious James, asking “Where can we get hazmat suits online?”, “That scruffy man in the park who pets Mitzi better observe this 2m policy or I’m kicking off” and “Should I be wrapping Mitzi top-to-toe in cling film for her own protection?” This subsides once I’ve logged into Mubi for a 4 hour trance session.

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What's your work-from-home style?

Firstly, I don’t strictly work a job, but I certainly have found other ways of occupying my time besides walking Mitzi along the beach, weighing into Anna del Conte’s Gastronomy of Italy, and vacuuming up news reports with a good measure of dance breaks thrown in. I’d like it known that my life is utterly irrelevant compared to front line workers who are actually contributing serious work throughout this global health crisis. They should really be interviewed instead of myself.

I’m quite concerned that when watching the news its all full of Covid-19 related issues, rightly so, but we aren’t hearing about other important issues such as poverty, domestic violence and these issues are very much still continuing during Covid-19, if not exacerbated - it worries me about the fate of some of these people who are suffering. I feel their stories aren’t given enough airtime, better still how can the everyday person with money and time to spare help those in need?

I’m also struck by the contrast in how the world has dealt with this virus. It’s interesting to see the contrast between AIDS and Covid-19 and the consequent course of action. My Lady Mother always teaches me to question what anyone tells you…

So far, growing concern about the long term economic consequences of the epidemic have translated into calls for the lockdown to cease as soon as possible. True, the longer we are confined to our homes, the more businesses will fold under, the longer those lucky enough to have savings will run dry of them. Then we must think about the knock-on effects of recession, those fortunate to retain jobs will instinctively question every pound spent - a paradox of thrift. It was hypnotic to see journalists pressuring a response from the government when the death toll creeps to 7500 as to when we might be allowed out.  We are nearing the moment of maximum danger, the moment hospital chiefs take a sharp intake of breath and even power hungry Whitehall mandarin atheists start praying.

A lighter note...

The UK government's advice is to ’Stay Home’ so whilst I’m racking up my nauseating lockdown hours, the silver lining to this - glinting ever so slightly - is that I can start exploring cyber sex. With an intermittent internet connection, greasy webcam and an all too present wheel of death flashing up; every single night they still hit me up. Through the phone they think we’re in love, but touching myself puts everything back on track just be sure to say that freaky shit you know I like.

If I’m honest, I’m enjoying this respite. I just came off a MA course in menswear that does absolutely diddly squat for mental stability now switch to me sneaking down to the basement drinking all my dad’s Belvedere. It’s the end of the world as we know it, and I feel fine.

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Tell us something about yourself that isn't on your resume (a secret skill, a hobby, a previous job or fun fact about you).

I don’t like birthdays. Never have done. Not when it involved towers of pancakes and a wax candle wedged through, definitely less so as I edge nearer the end. There are those who adore their birthday, a schedule of organized fun demanding your attendance to cake unveilings, holiday cottages, club nights and private dining sessions with all attention, hugs, kisses and compliments to be expressly directed towards them.  

And you’ll always find spirits like me, who could heave at the prospect of someone commissioning a secret party in my very honor. Weeks beforehand feeling anxious and purposely keeping a low profile to avoid any risk of a round of “Happy Birthday” in a restaurant full of strangers. Imagine if that conceivable person is putting a lot of effort into this celebration and they clock your forced smile rendering them resentful and liking you that little bit less. Also presents! I don’t ever want presents, well actually if you were to buy me the Lego Star Wars X-wing Fighter I’d be pretty chuffed. But besides that, I cannot perform a grateful expression to save my life so I, at all costs, try to avoid these situations. I’ll happily settle for being the greatest dancer with my good friend Lady Ms. Ralph in a sweaty club on a Friday night.

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What's the first place you'd want to go when it's safe again to travel and go out?

I pen this missive laid out on my bed looking out to blue skies. I’ve decided where I’m off to; I’m going straight back up into the clouds - I miss the sun bedding down over clouds, a never to be forgotten perspective. You know, I get so fed up when I hear friends, who travel a lot, chuntering they loathe flying. These are the types who aren’t pondering on the evolution of human kind beginning in mud huts to flying first class (I upgraded: bite me) with the seat back sipping on Belvedere and cranberry. They maybe operating a policy of dodging and denial, but you’ll find me commanding joy and pleasure from the idiosyncrasies of humankind. Whether it’s navigating the airport like it’s a Crystal Maze puzzle, travelers packing 15kg too heavily holding the check-in queue up by layering on their extra baggage or those daring to use the airport shower facilities, (you’re both brave and yet worrying). All of them convince me that 9am is in fact a thoroughly businesslike solution to start sloshing down Russia’s finest.

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Who is in your fantasy Zoom party (Skype or FaceTime)?

Hmmm, well I actually have been forced into a number of Skype sessions of late. I have noticed a change in behavior from once before we were face-to-face, to now being pixel-to-pixel; an awkwardness, a wariness. A wariness of potentially being screen-recorded maybe? Consequently, I find encounters are more reserved and measured… So I’m proposing that this Zoom party is a strictly no talking moment in time - I cannot be dealing with these standing around chatting situations, me hoying back spirits in defense against dull conversation in the smoking area. This Zoom party is a certified dance party - a party where all inhibitions are left at the zoom conference code - clothing optional.

For my guest list, you wonder. I’ve been on a Visconti binge for the last two days and Helmut Berger (The Damned) pops up along with Romy Schneider (Ludwig), so they’re coming. Berger was my crush for some time so hopefully he’ll take up that role at the party once more. Helmut Newton is there, with a bevy of whiplash beauties. Some kids from school who dance like stripper hoes. 

We need some good dancers so John Travolta, without any shadow of a doubt. A pickled Princess Margaret, bedazzled with a tiara. 

Then I need a JG Ballard thrill; some sexy petrol heads and corporate bankers, alongside Duran Duran, Kabuki, Paula Yates, Angie and David Bowie (sorry Iman) and some sexy friends of mine.

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James is represented by Success Models

interviewed by Lily Templeton

&

captured by Allan Hamitouche

…

Production by Michaël Marson

Casting director William Lhoest at WL Casting

#StaySafeAtHomeWith ... Alain Gossuin

Paris, 5th April 2020

Who are you (the long answer, no cheating by just giving your name!) and what is your profession (as in, how do you define it, rather than just the job title it has)?

Hard job to define myself!! I might not be the best one to do it, but if that’s the game, let’s play! First of all, I’m trying to be a good person and that’s quite a job! I’m trying to be democratic. I’m curious to learn about (almost) everything. I want to see and often try everything. I like new stuff. I like old stuff. I like to risk but I also like to play safe. I do everything on my side to help the world to go better and turn round. I’m more and more interested by nature for all kinds of aspects now. I want to respect nature so much more than I did before. I do not want what I haven’t got. I can be perfectly satisfied with simple and natural things. I recycle and repair everything; I love that. I don’t need to show off anymore, I’m more confidant in myself now. No need to prove so much anymore. Simple is best. 

My profession is men’s designer since school but most of my life I’ve been a model (40 years this year). In this story I’m wearing a (very) vintage boxer short and the last, just launched, white shirt both from my own brand: gossuin.com. My target is to build one of those new companies who are (finally) respectful with the environment and the social approach. Taking extra care about the whole chain of production, on every aspect. It’s a real challenge as fashion wasn’t used to that, and there’s a lot to do!

Who would you confine with?

My boyfriend Duarte but that’s not the case as we’re not living in the same city. I’m with my ex these days! Can you believe it?

 What's your work-from-home style?

Sleeping late, exercise a bit to wake up. Breakfast with lots of fruits, a carrot, nuts and seeds, then take my laptop and work. Usually quite a lot. If the weather is good I give myself a few breaks for gardening and taking care of the house, if not, I work full speed.

 Tell us something about yourself that isn't on your resume (a secret skill, a hobby, a previous job or fun fact about you).

Vintage cars freak, especially Italian cars. Racing meetings of those.

What's the first place you'd want to go when it's safe again to travel and go out?

Lisbon. Guess why?

Who is in your fantasy Zoom party (Skype or FaceTime)?

The answer is my boyfriend to any fantasy related question. But I’m clearly not excited by camera though.

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Alain is represented by Success Models

interviewed by Lily Templeton

&

captured by Allan Hamitouche

…

Production by Michaël Marson

Casting director William Lhoest at WL Casting