Issue link: https://www.balharbourdigital.com/i/1525926
behind the scenes Photographer Thomas [Whiteside] described you as a chameleon. What's your goal in front of the camera? I appreciate that. I don't have a general goal per se because I like to stay present… but an interesting thing about modeling is that every job calls for a different aura. I enjoy shape-shifting and ultimately becoming and experiencing many things while still inside my own skin. I feel like my ability to stretch has become (and will continue to become) more and more possible as I truly know and accept myself. Do you have a favorite character from the shoot? We definitely went to a few different places, energetically, on this shoot... I really liked wearing the McQueen suit; that look was fun. At 34, you've spent at least half your life in front of the camera. What drew you toward modeling in the first place, and what continues to drive you? To be honest, I fell into modeling as it seemed like something people thought I would be capable of, which I otherwise felt at a loss for at 14. I feel like I boarded a boat and sailed away on a path I could not have consciously imagined being on as a teenager in Texas. As much of a stormy sea it's been, I am eternally grateful to the journey, because it's taught me so much about myself and my essence. What drives me now is expression and resonance, and I love the opportunity to conjure something in an image. I don't know that I ever would have discovered my passion for performance and embodiment had it not been for modeling. You're also a musical artist. What gets you going in the recording studio? Collaboration and magic. Any artists you'd like to turn our attention to? Avery Tucker. I'm in a big Depeche Mode moment right now, and I always recommend watching the music video for Bittersweet Symphony by The Verve over and over again, partly because Richard Ashcroft is so gorgeous in it… and of course and for eternity, Björk. — TALI JAFFE-MINOR on set A LOVE NOTE TO MY ADOPTED CIT Y In Asheville, North Carolina FIVE QUESTIONS FOR MODEL ALI MICHAEL Fast becoming what many are calling the "Austin of the South," Asheville, North Carolina, "rims in life," to borrow a phrase from Thomas Wolfe, one of its most famous native sons, and has a cool factor all its own. Beyond exploring its surrounding forests or hiking the nearby Blue Ridge Mountains, this historic Swannanoa Valley city of visionaries, philanthropists, and writers, and the Mountain Capital of Western North Carolina (with its own Western Residence for the state's governor) boasts walkable neighborhoods where friends gather for craft brews in celebratory biergartens. Where good eats, from Indian street food and Spanish tapas to fried green tomatoes and Carolina-style barbecue (Eastern and Western), can be had at top dining venues. Where a stroll down the riverbank leads to working artist studios. Where musicians jam all night in iconic downtown clubs. Where century-old gardens and a vast network of biking trails offer restorative access to the outdoors. And where soul-mending bouts with nature heal the spirit like no other place on earth. — MATTHEW WHITMAN LAZENBY, PRESIDENT AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, BAL HARBOUR SHOPS Model Sasha Kichigina wearing Burberry in the fashion portfolio "Next Stop, Asheville," photographed by Matthew Sprout. In Los Angeles Model Ali Michael wearing Alexander McQueen and a Gucci choker in the fashion portfolio "Your Move," photographed by Thomas Whiteside. BALHAR B O U RSH O P S .CO M