Alek Wek life and biography

Alek Wek is a Sudanese-British model who first appeared on the catwalks at the age of 18 in 1995, sparking a career lasting to date. She is from the Dinka ethnic group in Southern Sudan, but in 1991 she and some family members fled to Britain to escape the civil war in Sudan. She now lives in New York.

Career Highlights:

1991:
- Moves to England with her family to escape the civil war between the Sudan’s Muslim north and Christian south
- Wek’s father is killed, leaving her mother and nine children
1995:
- Discovered by a Model 1 scout Fiona Ellis at a party
- Appears in the music video for Tina Turner’s GoldenEye
1996:
- Signed to Ford Models
- Appears in the video for Janet Jackson’s Got ’Til It’s Gone
1997:
- Named Model of the Year by MTV
- Named Model of the Decade by i-D
FEB 1997: Debuts on the runways for Alexander McQueen, Chanel, Jean Paul Gaultier, and Ralph Lauren in Paris and New York
FEB 1997: Walks during fall Fashion Week for names like Chanel, Dries Van Noten, Lagerfeld, and Vivienne Westwood in Paris
NOV 1997: Appears on the cover of Elle
APR 1998: Appears on the cover of i-D
1999:
- Featured in the Pirelli calendar
- Named one of People magazine’s 50 Most Beautiful People
OCT 1999: Appears on the cover of German Vogue
FEB 2000: Closes the Yves Saint Laurent fall show in Paris
JUL 2000: Appears on the cover of i-D
SEP 2000: Appears on the cover of Essence
JAN 2001:
- Opens the Valentino spring couture show in Paris
- Opens the Christian Lacroix spring couture show in Paris
- Opens the Yves Saint Laurent spring couture show in Paris
MAR 2001: Closes the John Galliano fall show in Paris
SEP 2001: Closes the Oscar de la Renta spring show in New York
OCT 2001: Closes the Jean Paul Gaultier spring show in Paris
2002:
- Plays Sudanese princess Aquol in the film The Four Feathers
- Campaign for the Gap
- Appears on the cover of British Vogue
- Opens the Christian Lacroix spring couture show in Paris
- Opens the Christian Lacroix fall couture show in Paris
JAN 2003:
- Opens and closes the Christian Lacroix spring couture show in Paris
- Opens the Ralph Rucci Chado spring couture show in Paris
JUN 2004: Appears on the cover of Cosmopolitan
SEP 2004: Opens the Fendi spring show in Milan
2005: Launches wek1933, a line of handbags named for the year of her father’s birth
2006: Print ads for Jones New York
FEB 2006: Feature in Vogue about her choices in denim and her overall style
NOV 2006: Nominated for Britain’s Model of the Year award alongside Erin O’Connor and Kate Moss (the latter won)
FEB 2007: Closes the Diane Von Furstenberg show in New York
AUG 2007: Releases an autobiography, Alek, in which she admits that some of her modeling work has had racist undertones
8 SEP, 2007: Named Vogue's third best dressed of the week in a short Diane von Fustenburg dress
SEP 2007: Appears on the cover of Ebony with Iman, Tyra Banks, and Kimora Lee
JAN 2008: Walks the spring Christian Dior couture show in Paris
FEB 2008: Walks the fall Diane von Furstenberg show in New York
MAY 2008: Walks the resort Christian Dior show in New York
JUL 2008: Featured in the all-black Italian Vogue issue, photographed by Steven Meisel
SEP 2008: Closes the spring Aquascutum and Jasper Conran shows in London
FEB 2009: Closes the fall Aquascutum show in London
JUN 2009: Appears in i-D editorial, photographed by Amy Troost
JUL 2009: Appears in Japanese Vogue editorial, photographed by Josh Olins
AUG 2010: Appears in Dazed & Confused editorial, photographed by Roe Ethridge

Read more