Fresh faces seek STYLEAID stardom
Hundreds of budding models descended upon Crown Perth yesterday for WA's biggest annual modelling casting call, the chance to hit the catwalk in the 18th annual STYLEAID.
This year, 87 models - 65 female and 22 male - will feature in STYLEAID's one- night-only fashion extravaganza, which has raised more than $1 million for the WA AIDS Council in its 17 years.
In the past, top WA modelling exports such as Gemma Ward and Nicole Trunfio have appeared at the event before moving on to international catwalks and recognition.
The event's creative director, Aly May, said people might be surprised how many models were in Perth but she couldn't do a parade on this scale without the teams behind the scenes.
"We are just so lucky we have a support team that is willing to take on this many models," May said.
"I don't do this without having a conversation with the hair director Sue Morgan and the make-up director Carol Mackie to make sure they are able to support this much preparation with their teams."
The STYLEAID casting panel will now decide on the models who will walk in the black-tie event's highly anticipated Mythic- themed parade, where they will don the 2014/15 spring/summer collections from top WA designers such as Aurelio Costarella, ae'lkemi, Zhivago, Flannel and Morrison in the Grand Ballroom at Crown Perth on August 1.
May said she was conscious of not choosing models who were too thin because she was aware of body image issues.
"I am guided by the designers' sample sizes. They do have to fit into the clothes but at the same time I am mindful that we do have body issues these days and we don't want to emphasise people who are too thin," she said.
"I have had girls in the past who are too tiny and I won't take them onboard if I feel that is caused by anything other than being that body frame."
