Before Yvesmark Chery was fronting campaigns for Calvin Klein and H&M, he was at Penn State with plans to run a tech firm. The detour came courtesy of a girlfriend and a casting call in New York — neither of which he sought out. What the industry found when it showed up uninvited was a Haitian-American kid from Philadelphia with vitiligo that had made him self-conscious since childhood, and a perspective on beauty that the fashion world hadn’t quite seen before.
His unique features have since been embraced by brands from Opening Ceremony to Vogue to a YouTube film on Black Renaissance figures shot alongside Barack and Michelle Obama. He describes his vitiligo as a blessing in disguise. The industry, eventually, came around to agreeing.
Q&A
How did you get started in your career?
So it’s a funny story. I went to school for IT. While I was there, my ex-girlfriend — she was modeling from a very young age and I was very studious, very focused on my academics. She dragged me from Penn State to New York for a casting, and when I was there, everyone was very encouraging. From there, it kinda just took off.
Was there a moment you felt it was your big break in modeling?
I think that this is definitely still the beginning of my career. But there have been times where I’m just like — oh, okay. Pardon moi. Excusez-moi. This is nice.
What’s a behind the scenes people don’t know about modeling?
How last minute everything is. It’s so last minute, so you kinda just have to adjust. I find it very fun because every day is different. I look at myself, hit a pose. If I don’t like it, switch it up. Also, practicing your smile — literally, I sit in the mirror and be like, I don’t like that. Start off looking at the camera, but you can always look off. Those are all different poses. And then you have to trust your team as well.
Watch his full interview here!