Niki's legs and inspiration in sketching...

The fact is that whenever we, girls, grow up, we need to identify ourselves to a woman. Anyone around you could be your lead model. Mine was my grandmothers for many qualities (and flaws too) and their ways of living and coming over difficulties. But when it came to beauty, my lead model became three. The first one was Dane 80’s supermodel, Renee Toft Simonsen. I saw her in an ELLE magazine in December 1982 and was astonished by her beauty. I then thought that she was the most beautiful girl in the world, and kept on that way until September 1989 when I noticed Niki Taylor. She was in a layout in US Seventeen magazine, and I knew immediately that she would be the greatest model ever to capture my way of perfect beauty. Niki has been and still is the “perfection” to me when it comes to women. Not only is she gorgeous but she is nice, smart, caring and a very lovely human being. The number 3 is related to Niki. I am speaking of Krissy Taylor, her late sibling. If Niki was perfection to me, Krissy can be defined as “my dream girl”. You know, the one you admire and would love to look alike. I never thought that I could be Niki, but I would have loved to be Krissy.

I never tried to sketch Renee Toft Simonsen, but Niki was one of major inspiration when I do my housework in sketching. One day, as I took a few classes in sketching in Arles, we were supposed to draw woman’s legs… and as, many of my classmates looked through fashion magazines to inspire themselves, I knew at once whom I was going to sketch : Niki’s legs ! I already saw in my head the image I wanted to do : Harper’s Bazaar 1992 layout called “Days in Venice”. Then, I had to imagine another scene, atmosphere but with those legs initially drawn… and here is the sketch I made.

So, yes, I can sketch any other woman, parts of body, etc. but when it comes to legs and perfection, it’s Niki’s whom imposes herself. So, Thank you, Niki, for being such an inspiration…