Kai-Isaiah Jamal by Till Janz in Bottega Veneta for Highsnobiety's 'Not in Paris' Fashion Story

Sometimes fashion stories appear out of nowhere — birthed on creative steroids and the promise of a creative renaissance. “Kai-Isaiah Jamal is many things. A poet, a model, a visibility activist, consultant and much more. But that wouldn’t do the London-based performer justice,” writes Highsnobiety.com

A few days ago, Jamal [IG] made history by walking Virgil Abloh’s Louis Vuitton runway show as the first Black trans model. Currently #62 on the Dazed 100, the influential voice became London ICA’s (Institute of Contemporary Art) first poet in residence, using the platform to make poetry accessible for young POC and LGBTQI+ people

“Everyone [often] thinks there’s one element that's more. I always say that I'm a poet or an artist above anything, because that's what my craft has always been,” the 25-year old tells HIghsnobiety. “I exist as a wordsmith, and then I also exist as a face or a body. I feel like none of them can exist without the other. [But] above all, I’m human.”

In this spectacularly creative fashion story ‘Not in Paris’, the human named Kai-Isaiah Jamal is lensed by Till Janz [IG] in a style narrative commissioned by Bottega Veneta. Agata Belcen styles Jamal, with set design by Lydia Chan./ Hair by Sarah Jo Palmer; makeup by Mona Leanne