Her name is Ariel Meredith. The lovely Shreveport, Louisiana native has been working the catwalk for years but is finally starting a little more recognition, proving that Black American girls are just as modelesque as their "more exotic by industry standards" peers. She was featured in TRACE magazine's most recent "Black Girls Rule" issue and walked for Nicole Miller, Baby Phat, Elie Saab, Vera Wang, Milly and several other designers last September.
Discovered at a modeling expo when she was still in high school, she quickly booked a lot of work including appearances in Lucky and Cosmo but found that her slim size 5 figure was considered "too fat" by the grotesque industry. She said in a Times-Picayune interview, "You know, Louisiana girls are curvy. I had a chest. I didn't care that I had some meat on my bones." She disregarded the pressure from her agency to slim down and get a breast reduction but soon found herself out of work.
Disgruntled, she took a year off to work on her body. "I basically did portion control and exercise. I like to eat. I'm not going to starve myself to walk down someone's runway... "And I'm not going in for a nip and tuck either. That's not me. I'm going to work with what God gave me." Once she hit a size 2, the bookings piled up quickly. Meredith has since appeared in ads for GAP Body, Target and Sephora.
In her Q&A with TRACE , one of the questions was "why do you rule?" and her answer was this:
I rule because I am me -- FUN! Fierce and independent (laid back at times.) Strong black woman...Stays positive....sStays grounded...Good attitude...THE SKY IS THE LIMIT!
Here's to hoping that we see a lot more of Ariel in the coming year :)
Source: Nola, The Fashion Spot, ONTD Fashinfags