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Meet the New Girl: Saskia de Brauw Is More of a ‘Character’ Than a Model

Twenty-nine-year-old Saskia de Brauw got her first taste of modeling, like many of her peers, when she was just 16. After a year of modeling locally in Europe, the Dutch native quit the industry to study visual arts back home in Amsterdam. Upon graduation, de Brauw worked odd jobs as a waitress and a babysitter until she bumped into an old friend from the industry, who encouraged her to give modeling another shot. [Ed. note: Good call, friend.] Now, in a span of less than six months, de Brauw has appeared in ads for Givenchy, been a muse for Nicolas Ghesquiere at Balenciaga, and perhaps most famously, is now starring on Carine Roitfeld’s final cover for French Vogue. We caught up with the model at her agency, DNA Models, during New York Fashion Week.

Outside of modeling and art, what else do you enjoy doing in your free time?
I like to do yoga, I like to cook, to go to exhibitions, cinema, films, dance performances, eat with friends, very simple stuff. Amongst my favorite artists you can find George Perec, John Berger, Italo Calvino, Krzysztof Kieslowski, Tadeusz Kantor, Marina Abramovic, Francis Alys, the movie Tuvalu, Bjork, Glenn Could, Nina Simone, Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker, [Richard] Avedon, Alexey Brodovitch and more

What’s a normal outfit you would wear on any given day?
I would definitely wear flat menswear-like shoes. I like to wear skirts long or short. I would wear a top that is not very tight. I would probably wear a scarf which I find one of the best pieces of clothing there is.

Tell us something most people don’t know about you.
I like to go to bed early. And I am not a bad cook, at all.

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Meet the New Girl: Saskia de Brauw Is More of a ‘Character’ Than a Model