Although a fresh face in modelling, Belfast beauty Kiera Gormley has hit the big time in the cut throat world of high fashion. At just 23, she has graced the cover of Vogue, as well as, modelling for ID, Burberry, Aveda, Aquascutum and Jaeger.
Kiera, from the Antrim Road, was discovered in a modelling competition at the age of 18. At 5’11 with a willowy frame and striking looks, she had obvious potential but it wasn’t all plain sailing…
"I absolutely hated my first modelling job, which was for a newspaper,' she says. "I stood there frozen in front of the camera and I had no idea what to do. I'd been excited by the idea of a shoot, but I went home thinking 'This isn't for me'."
"I was then asked to do a fashion shoot for photographer Khara Pringle and I thought I'd give it one more go. She was just so brilliant, and made me feel incredibly relaxed. That was when I started to seriously consider modelling as a career."
At first, Kiera fitted modelling around her A-levels and degree in art history. But then, when she was 20, her agent decided to send images of her to agencies in London. Suddenly, she was the darling of the London fashion scene where her unconventional looks seemed to fit the mood of the moment.
Growing up, Kiera was never confident with her unusual features. With her naturally jet black hair, pale skin and piercing green eyes, she was known by her friends as Wednesday Adams because she looked positively vampiric. It was only the words of a handful of her teachers and neighbours that gave her any hope that her looks weren't entirely grotesque. 'They used to say to me, "Kiera, you're going to be beautiful",' she recalls.
Today, Kiera, 23, describes herself as 'quirky looking' and quickly says she's 'no Jessica Simpson'. Still, her face and figure have taken her from her home in Belfast and a life in which she one day hoped to become a school teacher and propelled her to the heart of the fashion industry.
She joined the prestigious London agency Storm, which also represents Lily Cole, Cindy Crawford and Moss, three years ago. Since then she has travelled the world doing shoots for magazines such as Stella, British Vogue and ID. Her career really took off when she was handpicked by renowned Italian photographer Mario Testino to work on a fashion shoot for Vogue.
"When my agent told me that Mario Testino wanted to meet with me I was a nervous wreck," she says. "We met for the casting. He was really nice and he told me that he really liked my look. However, I was really shocked when he added: "But we are going to have to cut your hair, short."
"I loved my long black hair and I'd just managed to grow it down to my shoulders, but suddenly I was being told that it was all going to be cut off for this fashion shoot."
Despite her reservations, celebrity hairdresser, Sam McKnight, decided to cut her long dark hair into a distinctive cropped bob with heavy fringe. Her new look attracted the attention of fashion editors and photographers who were falling over themselves to book her for high profile jobs.
Kiera is delighted to have worked with Kate Moss on the Burberry campaign and she hopes to follow in her footsteps by having as long and successful a career as Moss. "I'd love a career that has the longevity of someone like Kate, but I'll only keep modelling as long as I continue to enjoy it. At the moment I'm making good money, travelling all over the world and meeting really nice
people. I hope that it's always this much fun."
In December 2007, Kiera appeared in an iconic image shot to mark Vogue magazine's 90th birthday party, in which she was photographed alongside the likes of supermodels Erin O'Connor, Lily Cole and Jodie Kidd. The shoot marked a turning point and catapulted her into the league of the modelling elite.
"I never expected this would happen to me," says Kiera. "Sometimes, I look around backstage at a fashion show and see all these beautiful women being made up and dressed, and I wonder what I'm doing there. When I'm back home, my sisters and I still all get in bed together to watch television. What I'm doing now feels like a fairy tale. It’s every girl's dream come true and I still find it hard to believe."
She may not be well known on her home turf yet - but it’s just a matter of time before she becomes a household name.
