The 24 year old model, Taja Feistner tells us about her real passion, art, her three-dimensional works with recycle and sustainable material, her future plans and projects. Also, she talks about her interest in sustainability and the studies and projects that she has been doing to be part of the change, also how she relates it to art and modeling, and gives us her opinion about fashion industry nowadays.
-Sustainability
TEAM PARIS SOCIAL DIARY: Where are you involved?
TAJA FEISTNER: I go to Penn State University online. I study energy and sustainability policy, its mainly focus on the governments and the way it make the world or the country more sustainable.
PSD: How did you end up getting involved there?
TF: I was just doing research online about which universities had better online programs and I found Penn State has an amazing one and they are number two in the nation for environmental studies so I was super exited to start working with them. I started a year ago.
PSD: Do you plan to collaborate with organizations?
TF: Yes, as much as possible! Right now, I’m building out a sustainable clothing label, thats one of my projects, where the ten percent of every purchase goes to charity. I definitely want to do more in the future, i just haven’t realize what.
PSD: How far is this from your work?
TF: I would probably have to consider that they are completely different entities. Modeling is the least sustainable, Im face of brands that are selling horrible things for the environment, so that’s a huge controversy. I started when I was 19. I was working in two jobs, I had drop out of college, so I was in a point of my life were I didn’t know were I was going, I was just working for something, modeling just came up of nothing, it is not my real passion. My real passion is art, for me art is above everything.
-Artist
PSD: What are you into now?
TF: Growing up I was always into art. Right now, I had been only working in sustainable art, with recycle materials. So, Im definitely more interesting in find objects or artists that incorporate sustainability in their works. My art is more tridimensional, I use a lot of different materials, sometimes it is two-dimensional, like something glued to a canvas or sometimes my work is more sculptural. I use objects that already existed to create something new.
PSD: How does this influence your career today?
TF: I definitely want just to blend everything, use the model as a platform to have a voice for speaking out to the world about the issues, and art as well as a voice, I think that most people can related to with this, it is more about the interpretation of each person.
PSD: What type Art you are curious about to try?
TF: I have been just doing different interpretations with different materials, I like to do more tridimensional, like installations because I have been doing a lot of two-dimensional, like canvases.
PSD: Recommend me one exhibition today (any in the world!)
TF: I really love the Gustav Klimt art exhibition, that was in Milan, I think it has been traveling around. He has always been a big inspiration for me, his art is completely different from mine but I like to get inspirations from things that are completely different from what I’m doing.
-Model
PSD: How long you’ve been working as a model? was it different when you began?
TF: It has definitely evolved, when I started, social media wasn’t as present. I think that sadly right now, there are a lot of luxury brands that are going out of business, so I think there will be a massive change of thinking about what do this brands are doing. Because even with all the money involve for campaigns or lookbooks, its going down, there is such an oversaturation of models and jobs. I think that they just going to have to change the way they are doing things and the way in which social media is making everything so instant. I think we aren’t gonna see huge campaigns four times a year, I think we are going to see small campaigns more rapidly, and less money for each campaign, because brands needs to stay there always, and be constantly in peoples eyes. Now brands are investing more in the influencers and bloggers than they are in the models because sometimes the bloggers have more followers and impact than the models. I think fashion is loosing the fantasy . Its good that the industry is embracing multicultural and different esthetics.
PSD: What makes a good shot for you?
TF: Im super critical in photography, I’m dating a photographer. Specially with shoots of myself I’m really critical. I don’t know how to define what makes a good shot. You just know when you look at it because it gives you a feeling. A good image is one that makes you stare at it and figure it out.
PSD: What is your dream team?
TF: I have so many goals! As far as classics goes,I really want to shot with Peter Lindbergh. Talking about stylist, I have always wanted to shot with Marie-Amélie Sauvé, I had work with her for Louis Vuitton runway, she’s amazing. In makeup, Pat McGrath.
PSD: Describe your model work in one sentence
TF: I’m constantly experimenting, exploring and enjoying the process instead of the destination.
PSD: Favorite place to have a drink?
TF: I use to go to someones house or stay at my own cause i love the personal feeling of being in my own home or in someone else’s home.
PSD: Favorite place to go dancing?
TF: Where you will find me more often is in a gay club in NY, that’s probably the place where I go the most. Its amazing, there’s no limits, people actually enjoy themselves.
