Sunday, October 28, 2007
The Gaze modelling agency
Just in case you don't know, you can go to my modelling agency, The Gaze, here.
This spectator sport
“It is the spectator, and not life, that art really mirrors.” Oscar Wilde.
Believe me, running a model agency is a spectator sport. So many hopefuls. Observation. That’s the real key to success. For a model to have what it takes, he needs more than just looks. He should be able to function under pressure – a lot of it. This is a high-stress industry.
The mugs I’ve booked in my agency: Rupert Haselbein, a sad bastard whose light went out too soon; Robert Lamb, a poor deluded fucker who didn't have what it takes. The only model with any prospects here – and I’m watching him closely – is little Vic Timblake.
I’ve heard Haselbein has got into the writing trade. He certainly hasn’t given me any joy at castings lately. It’s probably a good call. He started off well, even seemed promising, but after a few years he just seemed to crumple under the strain. He just couldn’t take being out there in front of the crowds, and in terms of dealing with the big names... You can’t let yourself be cowed by that degree of pressure.
As for Lamb, well he did a couple of good projects under my management, but he just wasn’t willing to go where I wanted to take him – it’s a trust thing. Plenty more where he came from anyway.
Believe me, running a model agency is a spectator sport. So many hopefuls. Observation. That’s the real key to success. For a model to have what it takes, he needs more than just looks. He should be able to function under pressure – a lot of it. This is a high-stress industry.
The mugs I’ve booked in my agency: Rupert Haselbein, a sad bastard whose light went out too soon; Robert Lamb, a poor deluded fucker who didn't have what it takes. The only model with any prospects here – and I’m watching him closely – is little Vic Timblake.
I’ve heard Haselbein has got into the writing trade. He certainly hasn’t given me any joy at castings lately. It’s probably a good call. He started off well, even seemed promising, but after a few years he just seemed to crumple under the strain. He just couldn’t take being out there in front of the crowds, and in terms of dealing with the big names... You can’t let yourself be cowed by that degree of pressure.
As for Lamb, well he did a couple of good projects under my management, but he just wasn’t willing to go where I wanted to take him – it’s a trust thing. Plenty more where he came from anyway.
Friday, October 26, 2007
Flaneur's Ramblings
“The only excuse for making a useless thing is that one admires it intensely.” Oscar Wilde.
A lot of people have criticised my recruitment process, but the objects – and let’s face it, these are artistic objects – show their worth through this system. People perform better under pressure, feeling themselves observed.
I don’t actually follow them around the streets with a camera, though I do get my PA to show up in some unusual places – keeps them on their toes. It’s more the challenge of making them feel that wherever they are, they are on stage – performing. They have to know that they can’t have off-days when they work for me.
That extra pressure takes its toll, but in a ten-year career, if you can get five good years when a model is giving the best of themselves – and making stacks of money on their own account too – then you’re on top. Of course they burn out in the end, but that’s the nature of the business.
A lot of people have criticised my recruitment process, but the objects – and let’s face it, these are artistic objects – show their worth through this system. People perform better under pressure, feeling themselves observed.
I don’t actually follow them around the streets with a camera, though I do get my PA to show up in some unusual places – keeps them on their toes. It’s more the challenge of making them feel that wherever they are, they are on stage – performing. They have to know that they can’t have off-days when they work for me.
That extra pressure takes its toll, but in a ten-year career, if you can get five good years when a model is giving the best of themselves – and making stacks of money on their own account too – then you’re on top. Of course they burn out in the end, but that’s the nature of the business.
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