They know what they want ... Director of Gear Model Management, Dragan Dimovski and booking agent Naomi Fitzgerald / Pic: Katrina Tepper Source: The Daily Telegraph

Girl, 13, takes out top model competition

 

Gear Model Management director Dragan Dimovski said other Australian modelling agencies were "very conservative" about the minimum age of the girls they employ, The Daily Telegraph reported.

In a bid to find young models to add to its books, the boutique agency is launching a talent search across Sydney next month and is inviting entries from males and females between the ages of 13 and 19.

Head booking agent Naomi Fitzgerald de Grave, a former model, said girls were missing out on international modelling work because they were not starting young enough.

"I know people may think that 13 is very young, but that's what the international brands are currently looking for in Europe. Models are too old at 16 now," she said.

"Australians are precluding themselves (from international modelling). They start later and then build up a reputation here, but they go to Asia or Europe and get shut down.

"From personal experience I know I didn't really make it until I was 18, and the opportunities were limited due to my age and size."

Ms Fitzgerald de Grave said international catwalks were after smaller sizes than local designers. "Australian (modelling) is going towards the healthy body image and that's great for Australia and New Zealand," she said.

"But in Europe the demand is for smaller girls."

The agency currently has a number of teenagers on its books, the youngest being 14.

Mr Dimovski said decisions about any work the girls take would be made by the models and their parents. "We also firmly believe in the girls staying at school," he said.

The agency's search for young models comes three years after public outrage at plans for 14-year-old model Monika Jagaciak to appear on the catwalk at Australian Fashion Week.

As a result, AFW organisers dumped the model and imposed a minimum age limit of 16 on models appearing on the catwalk at the event.

Social commentator Melinda Tankard Reist yesterday described plans to employ 13-year-old models as "exploitative". "It's teaching girls from a young age that physical appearance is the only thing that matters," she said.

"It's also putting pressure on them to conform to a certain body shape when there is already a huge amount of pressure on girls to look a certain way."

The Gear model search will be launched on December 10 and will feature events across Sydney with prizes worth $20,000 up for grabs.