Devon & Earth
 
| Devon
& Earth By: Glenn Belverio Photographer: Jordan Doner Hair: Kevin Woon Makeup: Yuki Wada Source: WestEast Magazine (HK) Winter 2001
Devon Edwenna Aoki is sitting on set, chatting on her cell phone and smiling. Nestled in a Mylar cocoon, she resembles a pop mini-Venus performing for an off-set Warhol "A lot of people say I always look like I'm wearing a frown, but its not a frown- it's just really the way my mouth is," explains this 18-year-old Japanese/German/English wunderkind. "Some mean journalist lady once said that my teeth must be really horrible because I never smile, but most of the time I'm just following designer's runway directions." Devon's mood rivals the brightly coloured sequins on the Chanel dress she is now modelling for today's photo shoot And her teeth are impeccable. When I jokingly inquire if she will be doing the Chanel show at the Paris couture next week, the girl who Karl Lagerfeld has pronounced the great beauty of the new century scoffs at my silliness "Uhhh, yeeeeeahh, I think I might be doing Chanel. Sure!" Before Devon arrives for the shoot that day, there is an air of apprehension in the studio. Rumours have circulated that she, like Naomi Campbell, is a spoiled diva, prone to snapping at photographers or blowing off shoots altogether. Does she have a list of photographers she refuses to work with a la Faye Dunaway's model character in "Puzzle of a Downfall Child"? Would there be a frazzled, cell phone-ducking personal assistant in tow? I quiver with anticipation. When the five-foot-six beauty makes her rather punctual entrance in a pale blue wrap-dress from Fendi (one of her favourite labels) and tall heels, the effect is half-Amazonian, half-kewpie doll. Instinctively, she reacts to the room's nervous silence by circling the studio, pausing in front of a hammock that the stylist has filled with accessories from Chanel and O&G. She smiles approvingly. I approach her cautiously, as one would a fawn, and ask her what she's been up to. "I'm in the process of moving to New York from London, reorganizing and throwing away old junk: she tells me matter-of-factly before showing the makeup artist the problem areas on her face even though her skin appears to be impossibly flawless. As we begin the interview, I feel as if I've been reunited with a high-school pal. The disparaging rumours, like so many in the fashion world, appear to be unfounded. Devon is sweet and personable, possessing a breezy charm that immediately puts everyone at ease "I'm happy to be working for a lot of reasons, but one of the most important things for me is that new models who aren't so stereotypical are being used more and more now: she enthuses. "I'm very different, I don't fit into a genre. I have a quirky, strange look. I honestly believe that beauty is everywhere and you can't classify it or impose boundaries." When Devon stomps down a runway, childishly swinging her arms while wearing her famous Lolita-like pout, her impetuous demeanour rarely seems calculated. Like Alek Wek, Devon often transforms the mood of a fashion show, unwittingly adding a dash of irony by injecting a dissonant element, thrusting the whole event into quotation marks. This effect can also be attributed to her presence as an Asian-American woman in fashion On this subject, Devon is passionate. "I think it's really important to have Asian girls on the catwalk- it changes the face of fashion, diversifies it, stretches the boundaries and creates more possibilities for what can be beautiful. It's amazing to see a black girl on the cover of American Vogue, and it will be just as amazing to see an Asian girl on the cover!" When I express how nice it would be to see Devon Aoki on the cover of American Vogue she playfully tries to downplay her enthusiasm. "Yeah, that would be amazing too: she grins. Devon speaks with unequivocal praise for her father, Rocky Aoki,
the Japanese entrepreneur who moved to America after WWII and started
the famed restaurant chain, Benihana. "My dad was the first huge
Japanese success in America," she says, beaming. "When he first
came over to America he had it really tough This was right after
Pearl Harbor and the war, so you can just imagine! He had to deal
with losing everything after the bombing in Japan and coming to
America and being completely ostracized because of his colour, his
race. Being a Japanese man in America was incredibly difficult because
people often end up generalizing and blaming you for things that
you're not responsible for. But my father never let it bother him.
He has such an amazing story to tell" Rocky also owned a nightclub
in New York called Genesis and it was there that he met Devon's
mother, an American from a blue-collar background whose family emigrated
from Britain and Germany. After Devon was born in New York, her
family moved to Malibu, California, where she spent most of her
childhood. Being in touch with her heritage is important to her
and she has visited both Kyoto and Osaka in Japan many times. "1
try to embrace my culture and all the traditions of my family,"
she says. "It's very important for me as a person to learn about
where my family comes from." Not surprisingly, another topic Devon
is fond of is clothing "One of my little secrets is that I go on
eBay - it's so addictive! I just bought a great gunnysack and some
cool 70s stuff:' And what does she think of the recent fad of recycling
clothing i.e. Imitation of Christ et al ? "If you apply it to environmentalism,
I think it's a good thing. On the other hand, you can't really beat
a Chanel dress or a great Fendi handbag" Her passion for fashion
has led her to design her own line, Devon Jeans, which should be
in stores in the not-so-distant future. "I want to do couture jeans
with a great fit that also have crazy embroidery, different kinds
of embellishment. We're incorporating the whole Oriental thing with
kimonos and things like that too." So between dominating the runways
of Paris, London, New York, and Milan, appearing in oodles of ad
campaigns and editorial spreads, and now launching her own fashion
line, it seems the super-mini-model has the fashion world in the
grip of Devon-Mania So what is her prediction for the future of
Asian people in fashion? "1 think, little by little, Asians are
taking over the world." And she's not kidding.
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