The Newest Modelling Agency In Town Is Filled With Virtual Talents
At Gen V, all of its models are virtual creations.
By Lynette Koh,
With their seemingly perfect features and lengthy limbs, models are often said to represent unrealistic ideals of beauty. While that point is debatable, there is no doubt that the latest faces to storm the fashion world are unreal – literally.
Local fashion photographer Shavonne Wong recently launched Gen V, her modelling agency, with five models – and all are virtual creations. While virtual influencers, led by popular figures such as Lil’ Miquela (2.9 million followers on Instagram as of press time), have been on the rise, it is less common to see virtual versions of what Wong describes as “blank-slate models”.
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The idea first came to the 29-year-old during the circuit breaker, when photoshoots were not permitted. Wong, who has appeared on Asia’s Top Next Model as a photographer and who has also shot American celebrity Billy Porter for Vogue, says: “I thought about how I could future-proof my career and help to further digitise the fashion industry.”
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For Wong, this is just the beginning. “In time to come, I want to have models of a good range of body sizes, skin colours and ages. My eventual aim isn’t just fashion. For example, when I figure out facial motion capture, I also want to provide hosting for virtual events. This technology has so much potential. Creatively, my biggest challenge has been trying to learn as many things as possible and all at once, as one person with one computer.”
Below, a look at other virtual models making their marks in the fashion scene.
With her pink bob and flawless skin, Imma looks the part of a stylish young influencer. In September, the virtual figure showed off what is possibly even more desirable than poreless skin to a Japanese young person: a nifty apartment in Harajuku, thanks to a collaboration with Ikea.
To mark the opening of its new store in the trendy district, the Swedish furniture giant showcased video footage of Imma in a specially furnished apartment. For three days, you could watch her going about her day – sitting on the sofa working out, assembling an Ikea shoe rack, and so on.
Described by her creator as “the world’s first digital supermodel”, Shudu is one of seven virtual models represented by The Diigitals. These characters were created by British visual artist Cameron-James Wilson. The most popular of the lot, Shudu has appeared in campaigns for Christian Louboutin as well as Samsung’s Galaxy Z Flip phone.
While many virtual influencers are portrayed as having their own personalities, Wilson makes the effort to be transparent about his process. Many of the images of Shudu are created by transposing her face on the bodies of live models, a common practice in the virtual-character world.
Many virtual-character creators aim for utmost realism, painstakingly adding pores and fine facial hairs to make their creations look human-like. Munich-based graphic designer Joerg Zuber took another route when forming Noonoouri, who looks straight out of a manga with her huge doe eyes and tiny nose and lips.
In an interview with German website Deutschland, Zuber shares, “Noonouri is and will remain a character.” Not that that has stopped her from dazzling the fashion world. She has worked with fashion’s biggest names, including Dior and Versace.
This article first appeared in The Peak