Senior models rock catwalk

Hottest elderly model _ Kim Chil-doo / Courtesy of TSP Model

By Park Jin-hai

Kim Chil-doo's dream has come true after four decades. The tall man who has been interested in fashion from a young age had to compromise his dreams due to economic difficulties. As a father and the main breadwinner of the household, he had forgotten about the goals of his youth. It was only last year when he finally made his dream come true and became a professional model, at age 63.

Kim says he always had a unique fashion sense as a young man. "I loved fahion and liked to try clothes that others wouldn't wear. I worked briefly for a small boutique and once entered a modeling contest to win a prize at 21," he said.

But as he grew older and life became more serious, he had to let go of his dream. "I couldn't afford to continue. Modeling was a low-paying job. Unlike today, there were not enough channels for me to promote myself like the internet and social media."

Kim, who used to sell clothes he designed, spent the better days of his life working different jobs selling groceries, fish and sundaeguk (stuffed sausage soup). In late 2017, the sundaeguk restaurant he owned for 27 years in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province, went out of business.

At a crossroads of his life, his daughter urged him to reflect and find what he really wanted to do. Then he found his old passion for modeling and belatedly gave it a try last year at age 62.

After three months of training, he debuted as a fashion model, walking on the opening runway for fashion brand Kimmy J during the S/S Seoul Fashion Week last year.

Walking the runway side by side with young models, Kim's lean physique, trademark grey bread and rich wavy hair made him a runway star. Young people shared his fashion photos through social media, shooting him to fame. Kim currently has more than 53,000 Instagram followers.

Model Kim Chil-doo / Courtesy of TSP Model

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This spring/summer season, Kim walked the runway for four fashion brands during Seoul Fashion Week.

"Young people looking at foreign actors like Sean Connery have this fantasy of growing old in style. But in real life, senior citizens who groom beards are a rarity. I think that is why the young generation has a strong response to me," he said.

While fashion is a pure joy for him, he said fashion is also important for other older people. "With the same clothes, adding small accessories like a scarf or hat makes the wearer's style different and more valuable. It can make senior citizens more confident and enjoy their life."

Now that he's entered the industry, he wants to become the first Korean senior model on the catwalk for world-famous fashion weeks. "London, Milan and New York Fashion Weeks are my dream stages. I want to walk the runway for brands like Chanel in those fashion show stages in my life. That dream keeps me going and keeps me challenged as a model."

Oldest acting model

Choi Soon-hwa, 75, is the oldest acting professional fashion model in Korea. / Courtesy of TSP Model.

Choi Soon-hwa, 75, is the oldest acting professional fashion model in Korea. Having unique silver hair, Choi debuted last year through the Seoul Fashion Week, walking the finale of the Kimmy J show at Seoul Fashion Week.

Choi, from Masan (now part of Changwon), worked as a nurse before she married. After becoming a mother and grandmother, her sole concern was her children. "When I was young and raising children, the only moment that I felt happy was when my children were happy. Now with my grandson is in his 20s, I wanted to find something that makes me feel happy," Choi said.

She started to attend a walking class for fun and soon she felt she wanted make it her second career. "I thought that I wanted to try what I really like before I die. Looking back, I think it was really a great decision. When I grew older I used to feel so alone, realizing how sad and lonely aged people can be. Living a monotonous daily life, I felt depressed. After learning modeling and meeting with younger generations outside the neighborhood made me socially active and healthy both physically and mentally," Choi said.

Model Choi Soon-hwa / Courtesy of TSP Model

There are many great senior models and every year more people start to learn modeling in their 60s. But she says the Korean fashion show business still is not entirely welcoming to senior models. "I love 87-year-old model Carmen Dell'Orefice the most. Her everything is an art ― her facial expression and the way she moves her hands. Many aged foreign models even with age spots on shoulders boast stunning beauty in off-shoulder dresses. In Korea, people would still feel some resistance to that.

"I think the way people look at older models needs to go through some changes now. Then designers would hire more elderly models and we would be able to become more than useless old geriatrics living on pensions and taxes. Looking at life in my 80s, I still want to be the first Korean granny to grace an overseas runway."