COLLECTION 6

39
KALTBLUT: Hallo Melanie. First at all I
have to say: I adore your photos in our
editorial, and having had a look through
your portfolio. You have some amazing
photographs. On every photo you look
so strong, as if you are born to do this.
Was modelling something you always
wanted to do?
Melanie: Hallo! Thank you so much,
when I was younger I had a dream of
being on a billboard. I never thought
I would be modelling, though I am
sure this is something every little girl
may dream about. I don’t think I ever
thought I could model, but I wanted to
be someone important. I guess in general
I always had a fascination with
something being “larger than life.”
KALTBLUT: You take some amazing
photos in each shot: which story or editorial
is your favourite so far?
Melanie: I really enjoy all of the photo
shoots that I take part in so it is so hard
to choose!! My favourite projects would
have to be (in chronological order) the
Rammstein video shoot for “Mein Herz
Brennt” directed by Eugenio Recuenco
and the current editorial by Maren Michaelis
for your magazine KALTBLUT. I
also really loved one of my last projects
in Germany, a collaboration with photographer
Christian Martin Weiss.
KALTBLUT: Can you tell us something
about your background? All I know is
that you live in New York. Are you born
and raised there? How did little Melanie
grow up?
Melanie: I grew up in Connecticut, a
suburban town an hour or so outside
of NYC. I moved to NYC about
three years ago while transferring art
schools. I had kind of a rough childhood
with my peers and family life, but I always
found solace in artwork and the
outdoors. Since moving to NYC, I miss
living in the forest most of all!
KALTBLUT: What was your dream
growing up? And why?
Melanie: I had always wanted to be an
artist growing up. This really paved the
way for all of my childhood and before
I started modelling, I was a fine artist
and studied in school for a degree.
Being an artist is the complete freedom
to do whatever you wanted to do,
and basically the freedom without any
excuses to just be who you are.
KALTBLUT: You have quite a unique
look: and as I can see in your portfolio
you don’t have any problems with
being nude in front of a camera. Where
is this confidence coming from?
Melanie: Sometimes it surprises me
how comfortable I am with nudity as
well. I think it comes from a variety of
things but I’ve always just been comfortable
with it. I’ve had to endure a lot
physically and psychologically when I
was younger so I think I’ve had to learn
at an early age how to accept and be
comfortable with my own body. Nudity
is our purest form and most natural
state. It doesn’t matter to me if I am
clothed or nude, there is so much our
bodies can say regardless.
KALTBLUT: You have a very good body.
Do you work out a lot in the gym? Or is
it nature? How important do you think
it is for a model to stay in shape?
Melanie: Thank you, no I don’t work
out or go to the gym. I do have a very
high metabolism and am naturally thin.
I used to go to the gym when I was
younger just to stay fit or accompany
friends. I always think it is a good idea
to stay healthy and really enjoy being
active in general. Living in cities or even
the forest really helps, you just walk
everywhere! When I first started modelling,
I worked primarily in the ˝art
nude“ world where the subject’s body
is encouraged to have character and
to really embrace who you are outside
of society’s ideals. As I shoot more on
industry related sets, I definitely see
and can understand the pressure models
have nowadays to maintain their
image. As individuals, we evolve and
our ideals change. I think all people
have the right to be happy and healthy.
KALTBLUT: Do you live from modelling?
Or do you have a normal job to
pay the rent?
Melanie: I am a full time model so yes
this is how I live! At times it is difficult,
especially just being a freelancer in
general but I can not think of anything
else I would rather be doing. I’m very
open to creativity and opportunities,
but modelling is by far the most enjoyable
for me.
KALTBLUT: As I said before you live
in New York: capital of all cities in the
world. How does a normal day usually
pan out for you?
Melanie: Haha well it is probably a lot
less exciting or stable than one would
think! My schedule varies day by day. I
also live in Brooklyn which is a borough
separated from Manhattan (”the city”).
Life in Brooklyn is a lot more relaxed
than living right in the heart of New
York. A typical day is waking up and
having breakfast, then taking the subway
into Manhattan or wherever my
shoot may be. The subways are pretty
much amazing here because they
usually pan out anywhere you need to
go. Once I leave my neighborhood, it is
very busy and I just get swept into the
momentum of the city. I love waking up
to go to shoots and then depending on
how much time I have in between shoot
schedules, or how long of a day it was,
I love running errands after and having
dinner.
KALTBLUT: As you know the theme of
our issue is Noire. We just love every
thing dark. What kind of imagery does
this word conjure up for you?
Melanie: Noire to me is like a sexy
smoke screen. There are a lot of layers
and hidden subtleties. It is very mysterious
and elegant in my opinion.
KALTBLUT: Can you share one of your
worst nightmares with us? We all have
bad dreams from time to time. What is
yours?
Melanie: This may sound awful, but as I
get older I can no longer really tell what
would constitute as a bad dream. Sure
I have unpleasant dreams but when I
wake, I have the understanding that it
is my subconscious and I always really
try to learn from those messages: such
as why do I have fear, and how could
I overcome it? When I was younger I
would always have nightmares, now
that I am older I don’t have as many
and I guess in the rarity that they do
occur, it is a visitation to something in
my past. I don’t like to dream about
people that I’ve had negative experiences
with!
KALTBLUT: Where would you say is
the darkest place in New York?
Melanie: I think the darkest place in
New York is the darkest place anywhere
in the world, in the negativity of one’s
own mind.
KALTBLUT: Our shoot was on location
in Berlin. Do you like our hometown?
How many times have you been here?
And where do you hang out when you
are here?
Melanie: I absolutely LOVED Berlin!
Absolutely. I have been to Berlin once
before during a video shoot for the
band Rammstein, but I did not get to
travel around the city or see much as
I was on a tight production schedule.
Even though I was in Germany for
about a month, I was shooting almost
everyday and I had spent a few days
in Munich as well. The times I did get to
hang out in Berlin, I really liked walking
around Mitte, and Kreuzberg for a bit.