AVA O`HARA stars in ALEXANDRA POPESCU-YORK

Updated: Oct 12, 2022

AVA O`HARA EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW

FMNYC - You debuted on the runway this season at NYFW. We know you walked for Alexandra Popescu- York at NYFW powered by Art Hearts Fashion. What did you feel when you stepped on the runway for the very first time? Ava - Gratitude towards Alexandra, combined with an intense desire to exceed her expectations for the opening and closing of her couture show during this season’s New York Fashion Week. For many reasons this was a Cinderella moment for me. FMNYC - Tell us more. Ava - Alexandra is an established New York couture designer. I have aspired to walk the runway since I was fifteen. To have her select me to open and close her couture runway show for my New York Fashion Week runway debut, was surreal. My eyes tear up just talking about it. I will always have an amazing amount of respect and admiration for Alexandra.

Alexandra Popescu-York @alexandrapopescuyork Fashion luxury designer, New York www.AlexandraPopescu-York.com FMNYC - What did you like the most? Ava - Being selected. Just being chosen. That would have been more than enough for me, but the fact that at 18 I was able to open and close a big show in a big venue during NYFW, modeling beautiful couture gowns, with all eyes on me for that moment in time is indescribable. FMNYC - Tell us a few details regarding her designs that impress you the most, and if you see yourself wearing her designs in real life. Ava - I first saw one of Alexandra’s signature wedding gowns and was moved by its old-world glamour, and the elegance of her vision. That gown was everything. It triggered an online search for the headdress that went with it, and to learn more about the designer herself. It was there that I saw a sheer black lace gown Alexandra designed that was absolute perfection. You know you are hooked, when you are imagining where you’ll wear one, two, three, four or five of Alexandra’s pieces. So, yes, yes, AND YES! I will definitely be wearing Alexandra’s designs in the future. FMNYC - The venue, Angel Oresanz is grandiose. Was it overwhelming or do you feel that you belong on the runway, and you can rock any venue in the world? Ava - Wanting to walk in a big NYFW venue, and actually standing front and center waiting to open and close for a couture venue like Alexandra’s are two very different things. It was both exhilarating and humbling. Some of the thoughts running through my head right before stepping onto the runway were, “Here it is! This is it. This is the moment I’ve been waiting for. I need to flawlessly execute everything I’ve been taught leading up to the opening and closing of this moment for Alexandra, for the audience…and for myself.” Now that I’ve actually done it, I realize that I was made for this. It is an environment that I thrive in, and that makes me happy. What is that saying, “Do what you love, and you’ll never work a day in your life.” FMNYC - What do you prefer the most? Runway or editorial? Ava - I hope that I am going to be able to do both. FMNYC - Tell us more about the editorial. What was it like to wear Alexandra Popescu-York couture gowns in a fairytale inspired setting that a million girls would die for editorial? Ava - Stunningly beautiful couture gowns, designed by Alexandra, and shot by Formento & Formento, two extremely gifted photo stylists and world-famous photographers. Pinch me, I must be dreaming! it is a memory I will always cherish. FMNYC - Tell us more about working with one of the best teams in the industry behind it? Ava - I have had the pleasure of working with Formento & Formento before and am very fond of them. I am still trying to figure out how I was lucky enough to stumble onto this gifted, patient, compassionate and encouraging duo that have taken me on as a “project,” it seems. They oversee everything with regard to a shoot, down to the finest detail. The finished product is always a masterpiece that I look forward to seeing. Their work hangs in galleries and is collected by art lovers from all over the world. For them to capture Alexandra’s designs from my very first NYFW runway show is extremely appropriate. They were with me from the very beginning. And here we are. Together. FMNYC - Tell us about a modeling challenge that you experienced. Ava - Which one? (Laugh) Have you ever seen the interview scene from the movie Stepbrothers? I actually had one of those moments recently. Mine was with THE SCOUT of the most prestigious modeling agency at the moment. It was incredibly unfortunate. A series of interview events prior to the zoom call of my life, resulted in what can only be described as short circuiting. I assumed my zoom interviewer was going to be brutal like the in-person interviewer that preceded her. An in-person interview that was a cross between The Devil Wears Prada and Julia Robert’s cringeworthy Rodeo Drive shopping scene from the movie Pretty Woman. A former model and scout asked me to tell her about myself. When I tried, I was immediately shut down, making it very clear she did not want me to waste her time with personal details about myself. The interaction was sad. When the subsequent more influential scout turned out to be genuinely nice and truly wanted to know more about me as a person to determine if I was a good cultural fit, I short circuited when I attempted to speak. I had no words. She repeatedly encouraged me to give her something to take to the board. I just kept saying, “Uhhhhhh,” tapping my mic and saying “Is this thing on? Is your mic working?” She was incredibly patient but when I couldn’t pull it together, she finally said, “Okay Ava, I’ll run your responses past the board on your behalf” and then politely ended our call. I sat there cringing, and could only joke to myself “Sooooo you’re telling me there’s still a chance? NOT.” FMNYC - What is your greatest weakness as a model? What are you doing to improve on it? Ava - Being passive. That’s not necessarily a bad thing though, is it? FMNYC - What is your best achievement so far in the fashion industry? Ava - The fabulous people I have had the pleasure of associating with. Talented, supportive, and uplifting individuals like; Designer Alexandra Popescu-York, photographers and photography stylists Formento & Formento who went above and beyond to make things happen for me, Tina Haukjaer Andersen with Tim Hartley Hair World and Elaine Maxwell with Vidal Sassoon New York who promoted me online, and last but not least, freelance models on the ground in New York like; Naima Garcia Instagram: @pretty_tall and Arifa instagram: @imarifaakter, who sourced castings for me when I arrived in New York empty handed. If you are reading this, and in a position to do so, scout them please. People that actually cared. This has been my biggest accomplishment to date. FMNYC - You trained with celebrity models to perfect your walk. Which ones? Can you tell us more about that? Ava - I have been categorized as “couture” when industry executives describe me. Since there are no opportunities for couture models in Portland, Oregon, I have had to seek opportunities for experience outside my state. This included taking runway lessons from two celebrity models, Coco Rocha and Beverly Peele. Both were incredibly lovely to work with. I’m a student of runway style. Every model has their own. I admire Yasmin Wijnaldum’s lovely glide, and Giselle Bundchen’s energetic strut. As for men? Leon Dame will always be first and foremost in my mind for originality. I adore his runway personality, and the way he unapologetically pops off! FMNYC - Who inspires you in the industry and why? Ava - That would have to be Isabel Goulart. Have you seen her? She is perfection from a physicality standpoint. Aside from her? Anyone that is kind. People that pay it forward, share, care, mentor. Those are my peeps. FMNYC - How do you balance your time as a singer, dancer, and model? Ava - I don’t. (laugh). I have had to forego singing for the time being. Dancing has been exchanged for daily Pilates. FMNYC - Which of your projects are you most proud of? Ava - That would have to be the editorial featuring Alexandra Popescu-York’s couture fashions shot by Formento & Formento. The circumstances and people surrounding this shoot will always be special and memorable. Three people who took me under their wing, uplifted me and made things happen. FMNYC - What is your personal style? Ava - Eclectically elegant and edgy? Is there such a thing? I am drawn to anything that is sleek and memorable. Drama’s good. FMNYC - What are your most pressing plans in the future? Ava - Experience. I am a new face without representation. I have been told it is a process. I have also been reminded by agents that I am not related to anyone famous, so my path is going to be different, and much harder. I have to begin in smaller markets and keep working until I get to a point where they can no longer ignore me. FMNYC - What is your highest goal in the immediate future? Ava - This year I turned 18, graduated from an arts and communication magnet academy, and have logged my first three magazine features. Despite this, I find New York is a very tough nut to crack for new faces. With Japan still closed, Milan and France are looking very attractive. I currently reside in Portland, Oregon where there are no real opportunities for my fashion category, so my attention is now focused on finding representation, and a second residence in a larger city like NYC where there are opportunities for me to work in the fashion industry.