I had the opportunity to speak to Obe Zarathustra Jones, who began modelling in 2018. Since then he has had the pleasure of working with some of the world’s most successful models, including Gigi Hadid and Vittoria Ceretti. Obe gives us an insight into the life of a model, including how he got there, and what his future holds.
How did everything start? How did you get into the fashion industry?
Summer in 2018. I’m from Devon, from a small town called Totnes. There is this festival in Cornwall that we used to go and break into every summer. This guy came up to me. I thought he was hitting on me at first, as he asked if I ever thought about modelling and in Devon no one gets scouted for modelling. He gave me his email address and we got chatting. I then came up to London and signed with them.
What was your first job as a model?
It was for a magazine called Cactus magazine. I then did a shoot with Super. It was Naomi Campbell’s fashion for Alicia.
What do you do apart from modelling?
I work in a bar, The Good Mixer, in Camden
Do you want to start a band?
Yes, I’ve thought about it for the last three months.
Who are your influences?
I have had a very musical family. My grandma was in a punk band called Crafts, in London. My dad was in a band called Faithless; my granddad was in a band called Matthew Sutton conflict.
Talk about the runway you did with LANVIN. How is working with Gigi Hadid, Bella Hadid, Vittoria Ceretti, etc.?
It was fun. I had a conversation with Gigi, while we were lining up. She was nice, Victoria, as well. I got a picture with her. I was lucky enough to get a picture with Gigi and another model in the line. I was thinking, this is going to look so fucking good on my Instagram.
What is your favourite runway so far?
Balmain. The energy in the show was amazing.
You are on the front cover of STYLE. Is your first cover?
That was my first cover. There might be another. Do you know Fudge magazine, a Japanese magazine? I might be on the cover of their next issue.
How did you get to be in the cover?
I was shooting with another girl, but I think they might have picked me for the cover because I was easier to work with.
Has being in a cover changed your career?
No, not at all. I think it would be different if it was in Vogue, for example, but a South China … lifestyle magazine? It’s not really big over here.
What do you share with the professionals of your industry?
One of my closest friends, Matthew Wright, who I met through modelling, we just have similar personalities when it comes to humour. I talk to Jeremiah Berko quite a lot about football. I think football is a very common interest between models. When I got into the industry, it inflated my ego a bit.
Gender and fashion. You took part in a makeup campaign dressed as a woman: All Dressed Up – Nowhere to Go, Shot in 2019. What was the purpose of that shoot? Has it any references with Duchamp’s work/alter ego idea?
It was for a famous makeup artist’s assistant. I can’t remember the name. I think that there’s a lot of male models who would refuse to do that shoot. My agency got a request and thought, okay, Obe will do it.
On some occasions you have been called ‘androgynous’. Do you agree with this classification for yourself?
In photo shoots, yes. I’m quite in touch with my feminine side. I wouldn’t say I’m like that in how I dress. In my everyday life I wouldn’t wear a skirt. Makeup sometimes makes me feel a bit more confident.
What is your opinion on the amplification of the concepts of gender?
I think people should do what they want, and people shouldn’t care and let people get on with it. I don’t understand why people spend their life getting so angry about stuff like that.
Out of the brands you have worked with, are there’s any you feel you identified with?
Being honest, I don’t know if there’s any brand I feel identified with, style wise.
The designers, brands, magazines you have worked with are quite diverse.
Yes. The shoot in the big dresses for Jie Wu: that was lovely – a look book.
Is it different to work with a student from Central Saint Martins, who has just started their career as a designer, and then with a high fashion brand alike Balmain?
It is different because of the production, but I can’t compare it to Balmain as Balmain was a show.
What was your last modelling job?
Yesterday I shot for my friend’s brand, the photoshoot with Fudge magazine.
How do you see your career in the future?
I don’t have anything confirmed. I would like to go to Paris or Tokyo.
