When your beauty breaks the rules: A chat with Yvesmark Chery

Interview by Luca Imbimbo

“If I were an animal, I would be an owl because an owl symbolizes
wisdom and knowledge. Plus, owls just mind their business and
observe things” – Yvesmark Chery @keien_silverjewelry answers our last question. And
actually, his acute gaze conveys a sense of freedom that goes
beyond the boundaries of contingent space. Haitian origins,
twenty-six years old, born in Brooklyn, raised in Philadelphia,
Yvesmark has a great passion for travel and good books. He’s a
model, first of all. Already “the face” of the H&M and Calvin Klein
campaigns, Yvesmark is the magnificent expression of a beauty
that breaks (luckily!) the obsolete aesthetic rules of a society that
was and is no longer: he is contemporary.

A proud representative of the Black Renaissance that he spoke
about in a short-film, shot alongside Barack and Michelle Obama
and later published on Youtube, Yvesmark followed the success
in the USA as a protagonist in the culminating fashion weeks in
London, Milan, and Paris.

Exclusive for Vanity Teen!

VT – What’s the best thing about your hometown/country? 

YC – The best thing about my hometown would be the numerous memories that I’ve acquired with family and close friends. It made me into the person I am today. 

VT – How were you discovered?

YC – I was discovered by my first agency via social media and then through mutual friends I ended up meeting my amazing mother agent Victoria Lyandres. The rest is history. 

VT – What’s fashion for you? 

YC – Fashion to me is a form of communication and expression.

VT – What was your first modeling job? 

YC – Feels like ages ago haha. I believe my first paid modeling job was a fashion film for a collaborative project between Thom Browne and Barneys.

VT – What were you doing before modeling? 

YC – Before modeling, I was attending Pennsylvania State University in hopes of being a CEO of a tech firm. I ended up graduating with a degree in Information Science Technology but decided to go in a different direction.

VT – What would you be doing if you weren’t modeling?  

YC – If I wasn’t modeling, I would be working up the corporate ladder of a tech firm in hopes of securing an executive position.

VT – Favorite modeling experience so far? 

YC – Each modeling experience has taught me something valuable. As a result, I do not have a favorite modeling experience but cherish all experiences equally and cherish all that it taught me.  

VT – Favorite things you like doing in your spare time? 

YC – In my spare time, I love to read self-improvement books and watch anime. In addition, I love to workout.

VT – What are you listening to at the moment? 

YC – These changes based on my mood. Currently, I’m listening to lots of disco, funk, and soul music. But before I was stuck in Summer 2016 hip hop hits haha. 

VT – Favorite movie/TV show

YC – I don’t have a favorite of many things because once I like something I binge it then end up getting tired of it. 

VT – Favorite designer, fragrance, or beauty product

YC – I love vegan-based beauty products but I’m always trying different ones, as a result, I don’t have a favorite. 

VT – Currently, you’re obsessed with/about?

YC – Currently, I’m obsessed with traveling. I’ve traveled to London, Milan, and Paris for the first time for fashion week and fell in love with learning about different cultures! 

VT – Place you would love to visit?

YC – I would love to visit Haiti soon and also a country in Western Africa.

VT – Last but not least, if you were an animal, which one would you be? 

YC – I would be an owl because an owl symbolizes wisdom and knowledge. Plus, owls just mind their business and observe things.

Yvesmark Chery by Zuzu Valla

Photography. ZUZU VALLA @zuzu.valla W LAB @wlab_mgmt
Styling. ALICE SECCHI @iamaliceice
Stylist assistant. DIANAH GWENDU @dianahgwendu
Makeup. GRACE HAYWARD @gracexhayward Using MAC Cosmetics @maccosmeticsuk
Hair. ASH HILL @miserycuts using AUTHENTIC BEAUTY CONCEPT @authenticbeautyconcept
Studio location W MODEL MANAGEMENT @w_modelmgmt