Daughter Of The Revolution

She’s one of the world’s most in-demand models with millions of followers around the globe. But at a time when the word ‘influencer’ is thrown around so often, Emily Ratajkowski has used her platform to speak out and create real change.

- Mike Christensen

There’s a presumption that we already know everything about Emily Ratajkowski. Cameo film roles, that lusted-after pout and figure, those bikini shots, that music video. But if there’s one thing for which we can thank the current US president, it’s the lesson that it’s best to seek out the full story. Ratajkowski’s story took a turn on 4 October last year, when the 27-year-old was arrested in Washington, DC. She was protesting the impending appointment of Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh, a man accused of sexually assaulting a number of women during his high school years. At a time when it felt the tide was turning against men who had abused their status, power and fame to victimise others, this felt like a rare setback.

Much of the subsequent coverage of the protest centred on whether Ratajkowski had been wearing a bra at the time. Clearly, there’s still progress to be made.

GQ: Your mother is a professor of English and your father’s a painter. Have you always been creative?

Emily Ratajkowski: Yeah, it’s in my DNA for sure. I know there are people who aren’t that way, but I can’t even imagine what that would be like. To me, I feel like everyone’s trying to be creative all the time, whether it’s in their business or their job.

GQ: How did you channel your creativity?

ER: When I started out it was a struggle because I was going to school for visual art at UCLA and then I left. I always loved acting, but modelling was paying the bills. Things expanded really quickly and I was lucky. In fashion, you have moments when you work with people who are extremely creative and it feels like a collaboration – like you’re being a dancer in a lot of ways.

GQ: And can you still be yourself?