....ITS ALL ABOUT VW (Veronica Webb@ Elite)

When I was about 8-9 years old i was watching this Dateline-type news program called 48 hours. They were doing a special on NY fashion week. They spotlighted a newcomer who had recently graduated from Parsons School of Design and unveiling his first big show....that newcomer was Marc Jacobs. During this time many of the top models would select a new talent to lend their modeling services to for free...this season they were lining up to be a part of Marc Jacobs show. One of the models was Veronica Webb. I was lying on the floor in front of the tv watching ( and video taping) amazed..... "Wow, a black person speaking French." At that moment she had me. Fashion and Veronica Webb showed a little kid from Memphis, Tn that the world was bigger than my hometown and I wanted to be apart of it.

While my friends were plastering posters of rappers, actors, actresses and athletes on their walls, I had an extensive collection of tearsheets of VW on my wall. I would walk 3 hours to the library almost everyday and plant myself in the magazine section. I read every book and fashion magazine that was available Memphis Public Library. I would rip out every tearsheet that had VW in it....and yes i still have them. My best friend would call me every time she saw her on tv.... our household came to a screeching halt just so i could adsorb another glimpse of VW.

In 1992 Revlon chose her to represent its new Colourstyle line of cosmetics for ethnic women. With this campaign, VW made history as the first black woman to be signed to an exclusive contract with a major cosmetics line. They later replaced her with Halle Berry. :(

When Veronica Webb started writing for The Paper and Interview magazine...I started actually buying the magazines. I remember when she published her book, Veronica Webb Sight: Adventures in the Big City. It was a reflection on her life. It features a collection of her essays, reprinted journalism works and her 106-page biography ... she was doing a chat online supporting the book. At the time I had dial-up and it took hours for that shit to upload on my old ass computer....but it did and me and my granny sat there chatting with her back and forth on the computer. I remember being sooooo starstruck actually communicating with her via computer. I told her I was an aspiring photographer and that I hoped to one day work with her and my other favorite model, Jason Olive....I recalled her response being ..."hmmmm, good choice". I was soooo hyped.

above: my drawing of supermodels Veronica Webb and Jason Olive

When I was studying fashion design, all my sketches body types were super versions of Veronica Webb with amazing long legs that stretched across my sketchbooks.

left: one of my many design sketches. my asymetric b-ball dress. (far left is Georgianna Roberston in the Dennis Rodman dress, Veronica Webb and Naomi Campbell in the hardaway #1 dress, and Trya on the end in the Michael Jordan joint.)

I don't think people, including myself, realize what kind of affect they have on people. Veronica Webb had a big effect on my involvement with fashion and shaped and molded my way of thinking on a major level. If the opportunity presented itself for me to get the chance to work with her.... i think would pass out.