Interviewed by Suzanne Lyons

Recently, I had the honor of interviewing Chanel Clark, the director of the Miss New York City Plus Organization and producer of the Miss NYC Plus Pageant.   Not only is Chanel a gorgeous plus model, but this amazing woman is also an advocate for including plus women on the catwalks along with their "straight-sized" counterparts.  During New York City's Fashion Week this month, she staged a rally to bring awareness to the lack of plus models during this high-fashion event.  We took a bit of time to get Chanel's take on this year's Fashion Week and where she sees the industry going...

[Suzanne] Tell me a little about yourself, Chanel.  Where did you grow up?  What got you into the plus modeling industry?

[Chanel] Originally, I am from Trenton NJ, later migrating to upstate New York, finally making my way back down to New York City.  When I was living upstate in Albany, I signed on as a plus model with HBM Model Management of NY, which at that time, did not represent plus models.  So I was basically a plus model represented by a skinny model agency. 

I would pack up my car on the weekends and drive down to do photo shoots and fashion shows.  Eventually, I had to make a concrete decision to move to Manhattan because I had to "be in it, to win it," and New York City is where it's at.  Every connection, casting, photo shoot and opportunity was only a subway ride away instead of a 4-hour long commute on the weekends.

[Suzanne] You're the director of the Miss NYC Plus organization.  What prompted you to start the organization and what do you hope to accomplish through it? 

[Chanel] I felt the need to fill in a void.  Sure there are fashion shows and events catered to showcasing the curvaceous woman in a positive and fashionable manner, but there should be more events that catch the attention of not only the plus community, but the entire fashion community of New York City.  The only way we, as a plus industry, will ever gain any respect, is by extending ourselves beyond our comfort zone; we have to start kicking down barriers that keep us separated and unnoticed from the mainstream fashion industry. 

[Suzanne] You held your first NYC Plus pageant in March of this year.  How did it go and what would you change for next year?


Photo Credit: Chanel Clarke by Photographer Luke Jones