The Scene: Supermodel Julie Henderson

You know Julie Henderson, without even knowing you do.  She has been in advertisements for Pantene and Benetton, and modeled in Elle Girl, Teen Vogue, Harper's Bazaar, Photo, and Italian Vogue.  It may just be that you don’t want to admit recognizing her from the famed Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue.  Julie has appeared in SI’s celebrated spread four times.

Julie is signed to the agencies: Models 1, Modelwerk, New York Model Management, Ford Models Europe – Paris, and also represented by Ryan Brown and Lorenzo Martone’s ARC New York.

Congratulations on making the cover of Sports Illustrated Calendar, I’m sure you’re incredibly excited!  What does it mean to you?  How did you first receive the news?

Sports Illustrated gives us copies of everything…  So I didn't find out until I opened the box of calendars at my agency.  SI is always super secretive with all of their news on who makes what.  It’s torturous, but I’m so happy and honored!  When a girl gets the cover of the calendar it means they are a definite cover contender.

How did you get your start in the modeling industry?

I started in Houston at the age of 13.  I’m a true Texan at heart and in the land of pageants and beauty contests; I went to the Barbizon School of Modeling.  It began with just local work.  At 16, I made the move in my career to continue in New York and signed with New York Model Management.  I went to Paris after that and did a ton of shows and did a campaign for Benetton.

What was your first job?

My first job was shooting for prom dresses in Houston Texas!  Glamorous, right?!

Well, you certainly didn’t give up, and that says a lot about you.  As you look toward the future in your career, who are the models that inspire you and which model’s career is most ideal?

I truly admire Heidi Klum.  She has my ideal career.  Heidi used things like Sports Illustrated to project her career to the next level.  She is now one of the most recognizable TV personalities in the world.  She is a household name.  I admire her work ethic and passion for so many different areas: jewelry design is just one example.  She seems like a down-to-earth, respectable woman.

No one ever talks about the tough parts of their career.  Was there ever a time you wanted to give up on modeling?

At one point, yes.  I was traveling a lot and it started to be a little overwhelming.  I was spending time in Tokyo, and I realized that I needed to take some time off or I wasn't going to last much longer.

I took 3 months off to “recharge my batteries” and came back better than ever!  At such a young age, it can be very difficult to be away from your family and in countries that are confusing and challenging.

What is your favorite job?

Sports Illustrated is always my favorite.  They are the friendliest crew ever and it’s always shot at the best locations.  Over the past 4 years, they have become a family to me.  We have so much fun, and I look forward to it every single year!

Who haven’t you worked with that you would really enjoy working with in the future?  What do you admire about their work?

I would love to work with Annie Leibovitz, Patrick Demarchelier, or Gilles Bensimon.  They all know how to make women look beautiful and have created some of the most iconic images in the history of fashion!

They are all legends in their own right.  And speaking of legends, do you have any comments on the untimely death of Alexander McQueen?

It’s so sad and it broke my heart to hear about it.

It goes without saying that he will be sorely missed.  I’ll try to return to a lighter note: Can you tell me the details behind becoming an ARC Girl?

I was working with Ryan Brown before he teamed up with Lorenzo Martone to begin ARC.  So I naturally followed.  Ryan and Lorenzo are a true team in every sense of the word.  They have worked along my agent Cory Bautista to really craft projects and press that have helped my career.  I LOVE MY BOYS!