Brand:
Perry Ellis
Year: Spring/Summer 1998
Model:
Boris Kodjoe
Ph:
Bruce Weber
Daily News Record :
"In the capricious world of male modeling, where success and stature are determined by superstar photographers, overworked bookers, harried stylists, egotistical designers and opinionated editors, it's still possible to be discovered the old-fashioned way: walking down the street.
That's what happened to the German model
Boris, 24, who was spotted by Ford booker
Rita Valentin on the streets of New York two years ago.
Boris's mother is German and his father, a medical doctor, is from Ghana. He attended the University of Virginia on a tennis scholarship and already he's been photographed by
Bruce Weber.
At 6 feet 2 1/2 with a lean, muscular build, he was recently nominated for Best Physique in the Ruffino male model competition, which awards $2,500 to the winning model's favorite charity.
Boris, who like many male models goes only by his first name, has graced the cover of
Essence and has appeared in
Manner Vogue, German
GQ and
Esquire. You may recognize him from ads for
Chaps and
Perry Ellis America. With his classic good looks and regal bearing, he could be the next
Tyson Beckford.
An exceptionally handsome face will always have commercial appeal, but that's not to say bookers and stylists aren't still interested in the unusual. "There's another kind of beauty emerging," said
Paul Sinclaire, a stylist who often works for
L'Uomo Vogue. "I don't think we'll ever see another male model like
Marcus Schenkenberg --it was a moment in time."