I’ve noticed her. You’ve noticed her. For me, it was gradual. I thought something to the effect of “Hey look a new model of color”. That’s what made her notable. I mean, everything else about her rang familiar–beautiful, thin, tall–all traits of typically viable commercial models. Though, her features were way more ethnic then most of her counterparts. I mean she had a round nose, full lips. Such is not the norm in high fashion. So yeah, she’s got a little color and a round nose. Cool. I’m all for diversity. I mean, when someone as curvy as Kate Upton gets a spread in Vogue, I can’t help but think progress.
But this feels different. Kate Upton may be curvy but she excels at one, very popular, bankable criterion, being the blonde bombshell– made famous by icons such as Jayne Mansfield, Marylin Monroe and Anna Nicole Smith. Joan Smalls is a high fashion model. She walks the runways of the biggest shows, covers every major fashion glossy, gets booked for the uber luxury brand campaigns. She’s at the top of her game, and if you check her stats, it appears she at the top of the game. No one is getting all the work she is. She’s not only the biggest minority in modeling, she’s the biggest model in fashion. She segue’s from couture to mainstream seamlessly, effortlessly.
And I hate to point this out, but when you look at how colorless the catwalks are at any given major fashion week, or scan the pages of your favorite fashion mag, you begin to see how this warrants some acknowledgment. So Yea! Go Joan! Somewhere some little brown skin girl is looking at her, identifying with her and internalizing how beautiful she is in her own skin and her cute, round nose.
Puerto Rican beauty Joan Smalls is having a moment. In the last two years she has risen the giddy heights to become ranked number one in the world on models.com. In terms of commercial clout, fashion representation and sheer desirability, that makes her approximately the best looking woman on the planet. Yet speak to anyone about working with Smalls and a familiar pattern of adjectives emerge: adorable, professional, bankable and drop dead gorgeous.
Ms Smalls opened her portfolio in January 2010 after being personally selected by Givenchy‘s Riccardo Tisci as an exclusive runway client for the directional fashion powerhouse and its noble chief. In the intervening two years she’s clocked up covers for international Vogue editions, iD, Harper’s Bazaar and GQ. Her campaigns for Chanel, Lacoste, Calvin Klein Jeans and a sensational run of four seasons for Gucci have elevated her perfect physical proportions to billboard stature.
GQ UK
It’s not just fashion lines Joan is inspiring. In 2011 she broke beauty industry standards to become the first ever Latina face of cosmetics giant Estée Lauder.
Joan, who signed with Elite Model Management in New York in 2007, was drawn to the industry for the financial security, hoping a model’s salary could mean a better life for her and her family.
Born in Hatillo, Puerto Rico, as Joan Smalls Rodriguez, the model claims African, Spanish, Taíno Indian and Irish heritage.
Joan Smalls Timeline
1988
- Born in Puerto Rico
- 2007
- Signs with Elite Model Management in New York
- 2007
- Models for the fall Tory Burch presentation in New York
- 2007
- Appears in Liz Claiborne print ads alongside Anouck Lepère
- 2007
- Models for Nordstrom fall catalog
- SEP 2007
- Closes the spring Ports 1961 show in New York, also walks for Benjamin Cho, L’Wren Scott, Tracy Reese, and Heatherette
- 2008
- Becomes the face of Ports 1981
- FEB 2008
- Walks the fall Diane von Furstenberg, James Coviello, Ports 1961, and Sass & Bide shows in New York
- FEB 2008
- Appears in Cosmopolitan editorial
- FEB 2008
- Makes an appearance in Ricky Martin’s “Its Alright” music video Video»
- JUL 2008
- Appears in V feature with Elite Model Management models, photographed by Taghi Naderzad
- 2009
- Leaves Elite and signs with IMG
- JAN 2010
- Breakthrough: Walks the spring Givenchy couture show in Paris, as an exclusive
- FEB 2010
- Walks the fall Anna Sui, Gucci, Burberry, Prada, Yves Saint Laurent, and Valentino shows in New York, London, Milan, and Paris
- APR 2010
- Appears in Italian Vogue editorial, photographed by Steven Meisel
- MAY 2010
- Appears in German Vogue editorial, photographed by Patrick Demarchelier
- JUN 2010
- Vogue features Smalls as a rising star, selected by André Leon Talley
- 2010
- Becomes one of the faces of Gucci
- 2010
- Models for Givenchy fall ad campaign, photographed by Mert Alas and Marcus Piggott
- JUL 2010
- Walks the fall Givenchy, Jean Paul Gaultier, and Christian Dior couture shows in Paris
- JUL 2010
- Appears in Vogue editorial, photographed by Mario Testino
- AUG 2010
- Appears in French Vogue editorial, photographed by David Sims
- SEP 2010
- Opens the spring Jason Wu and Yves Saint Laurent shows in New York and Paris; Closes for Christian Dior and Jean Paul Gaultier
- SEP 2010
- Appears in two editorials for Vogue
- 2010
- Featured on the fall cover of i-D, photographed by Danielle and Iango
- NOV 2010
- Appears in Vogue editorial, photographed by Norman Jean Roy
- DEC 2010
- Appears in Vogue editorial, styled in Tom Ford
- 2011
- Renews contract with Gucci
- 2011
- Becomes the face of Roberto Cavalli and Stella McCartney
- JAN 2011
- Appears in two editorials for Vogue
- JAN 2011
- Walks the spring Christian Dior and Jean Paul Gaultier couture shows in Paris; Also makes appearance at the fall Givenchy menswear show in Paris
- FEB 2011
- Closes for the fall Gucci and Giambattista Valli shows in Milan and Paris
- FEB 2011
- Appears in an all-black editorial for Italian Vogue, alongside Chanel Iman; Also appears in French Vogue and Vogue
- MAR 2011
- Appears in British Vogue editorial, photographed by Nick Knight
- MAR 2011
- Appears in editorials for Vogue and French Vogue
- APR 2011
- Appears in Vogue editorial, photographed by Mert Alas and Marcus Piggott
- JUN 2011
- Appears in editorials for W and Vogue
- JUL 2011
- Appears in W editorial, photographed by Terry Richardson
- AUG 2011
- Appears in Italian Vogue editorial, photographed by Emma Summerton
- 2011
- Appears in David Yurman and Gucci fall ad campaigns
- 2011
- Signs contract with Estee Lauder
- New York Magazine
