CoverModels' Laura Kell
Avenue Magazine (Korea)

Laura Kell

July 28, 2010

"Are you sure you can do this?" Shin, my manager at View Model Management, asks me over the telephone. It is the evening before I shoot for Avenue - a Korean luxury brand and goods magazine. The editorial is going to be shot underwater, at an underwater studio on the outskirts of Seoul. Shin is terrified that I am going to show up on set, and be unable to perform three feet under the water's surface.

"Shin, I started taking swimming lessons when I was three, and swam club until I was fourteen," I reassure him. "I will be just fine underwater!"

"You do not understand!" Shin protests. "Modelling underwater is very hard. It is not the same as doing swim team. Models think they can do it, and then they can't!" He goes on to explain a situation he encountered with another model at the agency. She told him she would be fine shooting underwater, but when they arrived on set, she couldn't perform below the surface. The client was forced to change and rework their entire concept.

"Shin, I'm going to be fine. I promise."

"Are you sure, Laura?"

"Yes, Shin. I'm sure."

Welcome to a Canadian model's life in Seoul, South Korea.

The underwater studio is located about an hour's drive outside of downtown Seoul. I nap most of the way in the van, seated between Shin and the makeup artist's assistant. As we near the studio, I wake up and absently gaze out the window.

"Oh my god, Shin, are those rice paddy fields?" I nearly scream, out of excitement.

Shin nods, yawning. "Yes. So? What's the big deal?"

"You don't understand!" I reply, leaning over the makeup artist's assistant to get a better look. "We we don't have those in Canada!"

We eventually arrive at the studio, and I'm quickly sent to hair and makeup. There's not much to do in the hair and makeup department when one is shooting an editorial underwater. The hairstylist glues long, reddish-brown extensions to my scalp, while the makeup artist touches up my face with some concealer and paints on a fabulous fire engine red lip.

Although I have always been very comfortable swimming and being underwater, shooting below the surface is - just as Shin told me - quite different from shooting on dry land. Many of the looks we shot required me to wear these fabulous dresses by Jill Stuart and Diane von Furstenberg, however once submerged in water the fabric became very heavy. Fortunately, the underwater studio provided a small team of diving aids and lifeguards for my safety, throughout the duration of the shoot. It also helped that the photographer, Han, spoke English fluently and that the water in the "pool" was quite warm.

In my down time between looks, I took to lying on my back and floating around in the shallow end of the studio, while the late afternoon sunshine poured in through the studio's open windows. It was the most luxurious and serene sensation, the summer breeze skimming across my face, all while feeling weightless and wet in a red, Christian Dior ball gown.

Despite the fact that shooting underwater is a TON of fun, it's also very tiring and can be, at times, stressful. In total, we shot about ten looks for the magazine, and I was exhausted at the end of the day. It takes a lot of effort to keep afloat (or sometimes, in my case, sink) with one's body wrapped in yards of waterlogged fabric. The velveteen dresses would cling to my legs, pulling me down under the water's surface by their sheer weight.

When we were finally done shooting I was exhausted, with bloodshot eyes to boot, and slept all the way home.

The real reward was when I finally saw the photos published in Avenue's July issue. Han's photography skills had captured my inner water nymph perfectly. Everyone's hard work that day had paid off. I resembled something along the lines of a mermaid getting caught up in high fashion and coloured lights. It's something I never thought I would experience, shooting underwater, but then again spending a summer modelling on the other side of the world is something I never thought I would experience either.

Life is funny sometimes, don't you think?

With Love, From Seoul

Laura Kell is a CoverModels' model, with View in Seoul.