Montell Martin for Issue 13

Montell Martin at Select Model Management may be on the perimeters of Generation Z - but he’s an old soul at heart. At 21-years old, in facing the unfamiliar waters of adulthood, it’s easy to discard the beauty of the past. With his postcode carved into the fibres of his mind, our fashion cover boy recalls memories that dance in dusty yellow-tones; he retraces the same streets his feet have come to know; “I went to the school at the top of my road, so I’m very much from Kensal Rise.”

Editor-in-Chief Cecilie Harris photographs the glory of Montell’s sunlit afternoons at home in West London in the fashion cover story for our Autumn Winter '17 issue, 'Tales of a new Generation'. From the echelons of fashion, after being handpicked by brands such as Louis Vuitton, Calvin Klein and Burberry - to the humility of his double-bunker bed he shares with younger brother, Miles. Sheltered in the cocoon of his mother’s laughter, Montell is stripped to his natural state of wide-eyed grins.

The wider fit of manhood sits easy on his shoulders, yet boyhood continues to emit its warm glow. He will never forget the trials of adolescence or the faces who remained loyal in his gaze. Fashion director David Nolan plays with textures of soft suede and black leather, juxtaposed with a nod to traditional tailoring. A reference to Montell’s double-act as catwalk regular and homecoming king.

Montell discusses the central moments to life growing up in London. Like the humming of laughter between friends wearing their school uniforms with pride; and the conditions of naivety within a metropolitan buzz. As a true voice of his time, Montell speaks up for the misunderstood with optimism. Planting the basis of a more inclusive future ahead, he chooses to smile in the face of oppression; “a lot of people in my generation, the prejudices and the discrimination is not a thing to them. In comparison to what it was like with their parents or grandparents, I personally think it’s amazing how there’s such a unity and a mix in each friendship group when it wouldn’t have been that way 20 years ago”.

To see the full 16-page cover story in Issue 13, beyond the below teaser images, the print issue is available in stores and via the BBG Shop.