FASHION
M
eet Kylie Vonnahme, the 24-year-old Texas model who was scouted at a Taylor Swift concert and never looked back. Kylie Vonnahme isn’t your traditional runway model. Behind the high fashion Patek-wearing images of her seen on Vogue covers and Versace runways, comes a John Deere-riding country girl with a unique heritage. Hailing from a small suburb of Dallas and raised as a “country girl,” Kylie built her modeling career from scratch after being scouted by a talent agent at a Taylor Swift concert when she was just 16 years old. “Agents find unique and creative ways to discover talent,” Kylie told PARK magazine. “You hear everything from girls being found at flea markets to music festivals to just on the street.” The encounter with the scouting agent was initially dubious, but Kylie and her family let their guard down after the agent flashed a business card from Ford, one of modeling’s most reputable talent agencies. “It was completely random, I was always short growing up and I got a crazy growth spurt, and all of a sudden I was this tall skinny girl which was something that the scouts saw as potential.” said Kylie, “I still had my braces on, I definitely never got into it much. Scouts are amazing in that they have an eye. I look back and don’t see the model in that 16-year-old me with braces, but it worked out.” Alexander Wang, Versace & Chanel. It wasn’t long after her first encounter with an agent that Kylie was gracing magazine covers and hitting the runways. Her first job was for a JC Penny advertisement when she was 18 years old. “It was a very foreign experience,” Kylie told
Kylie Vonnahme
A Modern Supermodel BY J A K E D R E S S L E R
PARK, “There’s absolutely no training or courses or anything so you’re kind of just thrown into the mix and have to figure it out for yourself. It was intimidating.” Shortly after her JC Penny shoots, Kylie’s career turned to top runways and high fashion like Alexander Wang, Versace and Chanel. “The turning point in my career was the first season on the runway
I debuted with Alexander Wang in NY, Versace in Milan, and Chanel in Paris.” Kylie said, “You start to create a name for yourself in the industry and you’re finally being put up for the big jobs and the big campaigns.” The quick rise from John Deere-riding Texan to high fashion debutante had a profound impact on Kylie. The fast-paced career path
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