Canadian model Mathieu Simoneau’s career began unexpectedly after a random scouting one summer. Since then, he’s been featured in countless acclaimed campaigns and lookbooks, ascending in the modeling world and rising to fame. Having already walked for shows such as Balmain, Prada, Valentino, Versace, Calvin Klein, Louis Vitton and more, Mathieu is one to watch.
Sheesh Magazine chatted with Mathieu Simoneau about life as a model, the high-fashion industry and individual creativity…
How did you get into fashion and modelling?
MATHIEU SIMONEAU: I was at a music festival with my friends and a man pulled me away from my group and asked me if I was represented. I wondered what he meant by that, but I wasn’t “represented” for anything so I said no. He told me he thought I could be a model and gave me his card for his agency, I said ‘thanks’ and threw it in the trash a few feet away when he wasn’t looking. I thought there was no way a legitimate modelling agency was scouting kids while they were at music festivals. On day two of the festival, the same guy finds me out of 60,000 people and says he noticed I didn’t contact him to get started. I told him I “lost” my card and he gave me a new one along with a more intense pitch. I shoved the card in my pocket and luckily it stayed in there until the end of the day. Later that year I signed with Want Management as my mother agent and the rest is history.
How does fashion play a role in self-expression for you?
MATHIEU SIMONEAU: I feel like the clothes I wear are a representation of how I’m feeling just as much as the music I listen to or the art I put on my wall. Recently, my style has become more mature as I’ve grown up, moving from streetwear to avant garde or designer. These days are mostly sweatpants though, being comfy is always my number one priority. In terms of modelling there’s not very much freedom in self-expression for myself, I’m kind of at mercy to whatever the brand or photographer has in mind for the shoot. I will say I am very open to doing things that others may not be, like when I wore a womens corset to a shoot or walked the runway in booty shorts.
What has been your favourite moment working in high fashion so far?
MATHIEU SIMONEAU: Definitely having my parents backstage at all my shows during my first season. Because I was 17-years-old I needed a chaperone to accompany me to all my shows and it was so amazing to have my parents with me that season. I got to introduce my dad to the world of fashion. He had no prior knowledge but he thought it was very cool to see how it works backstage. My mom likes fashion and soaked in the whole experience; getting to take her backstage at Louis Vuitton and Balmain was great. They were such proud parents taking pictures of me, but they made sure not to get in the stylists way.
What does a typical day in the life of Mathieu look like?
MATHIEU SIMONEAU: I’ve been staying inside for the most part, to be honest. I just do schoolwork, watch movies and relax mostly. Right now my typical day is waking up at noon, showering, eating, doing 8 hours of schoolwork and then watching anime or YouTube until I pass out. I’ve got my vaccine appointment for next Friday which is very exciting for me. I wish I was in London or somewhere else so I could give you a better answer but right now I’m stuck doing university work – ask me again when I’m at fashion week.
If you could only wear three designers for the rest of your life, which would they be?
MATHIEU SIMONEAU: I’m also assuming I have unlimited money. I would have to say Raf Simons because his pants are tailor made for people that are my height and weight which is sick because it’s hard for me to find pants. Then the Calvin Klein W205 collection so I could steal their boots and sneakers. And last, Prada because everyone loves Prada. I’ve never met a stylist that doesn’t love Prada and why would I doubt the professionals.
What has been your favourite show to walk in?
MATHIEU SIMONEAU: Every show is unique in so many ways so I don’t have a favorite. The most memorable show I’ve walked in was probably my first show, for Calvin Klein, because it was all new to me and I remember almost every little detail of that show – the fact that we had to walk in a foot of popcorn, Millie Bobby Brown and A$AP Rocky watching us, the wall of cameras facing me at the end of the runway, having to text my basketball coach I can’t make the game that weekend, meeting some models that I would become friends with over the next few years. It was all so cool and surreal.
Which photographer or designer do you most like working with and why?
MATHIEU SIMONEAU: So many teams I’ve worked with bring a very inviting and special energy to the workplace which makes everyone feel comfortable and positive. When everyone is positive and having fun that’s when teams perform at their best, instead of at times where everyone is stressed. There are many examples of teams I’ve worked with in the past that have kept a smile on my face the whole time I was there, but a prime example of this is the PacSun team. Everyone there is so welcoming. They try to keep stress at a low and give compliments when we’re working. It makes the work look so much better in the end. The reason why the smiling pictures for PacSun look so good is because we’re actually laughing at something the photographer or team said.
What is it like being in the high-fashion industry? Do you ever feel out of place or uncomfortable in your work and what do you do to combat this?
MATHIEU SIMONEAU: I feel like fashion, especially modelling, is a very diverse industry so I’ve never really felt out of place in my work. There are definitely times that you look at yourself and feel uncomfortable in your own skin because people judge you solely on how you look. When jobs aren’t going your way you know it’s basically only because they don’t like the way you look or found someone else they like better. It doesn’t happen to me often but when I feel self conscious I try to remind myself to worry about things I can control and to look back at all I’ve achieved so far to ease my nerves.
How has racial stereotyping impacted you professionally and personally? What change do you hope to see in the way Asians are portrayed in pop culture and perceived by society?
MATHIEU SIMONEAU: Personally I’ve grown up very privileged in the way that racial stereotyping has affected me. I grew up in a predominantly Asian neighborhood in Toronto, one street north of Chinatown. Growing up, being Asian was not even being a minority to me. I would even say my high school in Toronto was majority Asian which is really cool. After my first year in high school I moved to the United States. Asians were certainly the minority at this school, and so for three years I got to experience what it’s like being uncomfortable as a minority. Sometimes it was blatant racism, other times it was passive aggressive racism. Either way, it makes you feel uncomfortable being yourself and you hesitate and become more timid in front of others.
Professionally I do not feel the same way. I feel like the fashion industry is mostly at a great place for diversity. When you go to a casting, there is usually someone from every continent in the room and it’s amazing. There are certainly brands that have not participated in the celebration of diversity in fashion and it is more noticeable now than ever. Most people in the industry can also tell when one or two diverse models are cast in a runway just to avoid a callout or scandal.
Viewing Asian portrayal in society as a whole, there are a few things I would wish to change. The over-sexualization of Asian women needs to be stopped, they have been sexualized for decades and continue to be sexualized today. In general the media should stop portraying Asian stereotypes and I find it so odd that even today there are people that pull their eyes back or mock accents. Allowing that type of racism and broadcasting it in the media leads to greater, more violent, forms of racism.
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