Small town girl living out her fantasy after signing with modelling heavyweights

Hailing from a small outback NT town, 18-year-old Savannah Kruger has signed to one of the world’s biggest modelling agencies and is busy promoting the designs of a Sydney-based artist. READ HER STORY

Rising talent Savannah Kruger, who has signed for IMG models, in Darwin. Picture: Richard Dobson

Savannah Kruger is a young Aussie with big dreams.

Hailing from the outback Northern Territory township of Daly River, with a population of less than 500 people, the 18-year-old is signed to one of the biggest modelling agencies in the world in IMG.

“Some girls would think they can’t do this, that it is a fantasy,” Kruger told The Daily Telegraph.

“It is not a fantasy, which is what I want everyone to realise, you can do this too. It is real.

“Girls should feel that they deserve this, that they should go for it.”

Rising star of modelling Savannah Kruger in a runway show. Picture: Richard Dobson

This week, Kruger is one of the big name models taking part in the Darwin Aboriginal Art Fair, helping launch JAG Australia’s collaboration with acclaimed Sydney-based Yuwaalaraay artist Lucy Simpson, of Gaawaa Miyay.

The teen was discovered by a scout at Darwin’s famed Mindil Beach Market when she was just 14.

“I wouldn’t mind to go travelling overseas and have some new experiences,” the Arrernte woman said.

“I just really want to make biggest mob money, I want to be successful with anything I do, whether it is modelling or not.”

Kruger is one of six children and, when not modelling, loves to “go out bush”.

“I do a lot of fishing and hunting, I used to do a bit of weaving,” she explained.

Australian artist Lucy Simpson of Gaawaa Miyay and model Savannah Kruger. Savannah is wearing a JAG/Gaawaa Miyay design that will be shown at the Darwin Aboriginal Art Fair. Picture: Richard Dobson

“I like modelling in that everyone is very non-judgmental and it is a very safe space.”

Simpson meanwhile said she expects big things from Kruger.

“I am blown away by Savannah,” Simpson observed.

“She is gentle, she is graceful, she is elegant but she is strong.

“Savannah is a beautiful young black woman who is moving through the world in her own way with this wonderful cultural grounding and I am honoured to work with her and I can’t wait to see her journey.”

Simpson, who is a rising star of Australian art and has exhibited around the world, has been working with the retailer over the past year the JAG x Gaawaa Miyay capsule collection titled Of Place based on her original prints and artwork.

The collaboration is part of a broader industry trend of celebrating Australia’s First Nation fashion talents.

Artist Lucy Simpson says Kruger combines grace, elegance and strength. Picture: Richard Dobson

Earlier this year in Sydney, Australian Fashion Week saw the first stand-alone shows for First Nations designers ever.

“It is a celebration of our love of country,” Simpson explained of the JAG x Gaawaa Miyay collection.

“Sharing that thing that makes us who we are, the beauty and the richness of it is empowering but also brings about awareness.

“The prints that make up this range tell the story of time and place and memory, experience, relationships and that makes me who I am and I am proud to share that with others.

“No matter who you are or where you come from, you feel that energy.”

Simpson explained that the work was a celebration of visual storytelling drawn from the land and translated through responsible and meaningful production with the partnership aimed to weave in her textile design across materials including linen, organic cotton and Ecovero Tencel.

The capsule features four unique prints created by Simpson across menswear and womenswear.

“Featuring refined natural textiles pointed towards circular features, this collaboration considers the way clothing can act like a thread between stories, land and lives,” JAG head designer Katie Von Dadelszen.

“With inspiration drawn directly form the Australian landscape; in both print and materiality, this range is both of and for Country with designs infusing, transforming, and translating the very essence of place into tactile experiences and relationships.”