Meet Darci Clark of My Model Reality

Today we’d like to introduce you to Darci Clark.

Hi Darci, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
I’m the face behind the blog My Model Reality. I am a wife, momma, and model-based in the Kansas City Metro area.

I have been in the modeling industry since I was a teen, with experience in runway, editorial, e-commerce, commercial, and promotional modeling. I got my start at 16 when I auditioned at and was signed by John Robert Powers, a former modeling school and agency in the Kansas City area. In 2009, I signed with my current local agency, Voices And. In 2010, I was signed with The Campbell Agency’s runway division in Dallas where I received one-on-one runway coaching from the legendary Jan Strimple, which took my runway walk to the next level. In 2012, I signed with West Model Management in St. Louis. In 2020, I attended Coco Rocha Model Camp in NYC where I worked with Coco Rocha to further enhance my posing and runway skills.

I am a board member and model coach at The Model Board, where I coach many aspiring models in runway and photoshoot sessions, as well as educate them about the industry as a whole. I am also a board member for Kansas City Fashion Council, Inc. and the Model Director for Runway Review KC.

In addition to working as a professional model, I created the blog ‘My Model Reality’ in 2018 to share my knowledge of the modeling industry. I started this blog because I wanted to have a creative outlet where I can share my thoughts, modeling industry tips, and just general life ideas & struggles. I always aim to be authentic and genuine, writing about experiences that I’ve had in my time in the industry.

I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey have been a fairly smooth road?
I wish that I could say that is has, but unfortunately like so many others, I’ve had many ups and downs along my journey. One of the main reasons I started my blog and began model coaching is because when I was first starting out, my mom and I had no idea what we were doing or what we were getting into. Because of that, I had a few less-than-ideal experiences with agencies and photographers that could’ve been avoided had I had someone to guide me. I want to be that person for other aspiring models and be there to help lead them through this complex industry.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
I created my blog ‘My Model Reality’ in 2018 to share my knowledge of the modeling industry and help educate other models who are new to the industry. When I first got started as a model at the young age of 16, my mom and I had no idea what we were doing and no one to go to for advice on how to navigate the very confusing fashion industry. Unfortunately, there are people out there who are just waiting to take advantage of you, and we were pretty easy targets. All of the topics I cover in my blog are written with the goal of helping other new and aspiring models gain the knowledge they need to avoid some of the pitfalls I experienced due to lack of knowledge.

In 2020, I teamed up with The Model Board to offer private and workshop-based model coaching sessions, providing personalized and focused mentoring and coaching to educate models and help them reach their specific goals. My areas of expertise are runway, pose, photoshoot and runway prep, and general industry and agency advice.

What sets me apart is that I have over 15 years of experience to base my blog posts and coaching techniques on. I don’t give any false hopes and I am very honest about the glamourous and dark sides of the industry. I am my student and blog reader’s biggest cheerleader, and I am incredibly proud of them when they achieve their goals!

Can you talk to us a bit about the role of luck?
I feel that I was very lucky that my mom took a huge step out of the box and got me involved in modeling with I was younger. I’m from a very small town and really the only acceptable extracurricular thing to do was sports, and due to my height at a very young age it was expected that I would play volleyball or basketball. I wasn’t even slightly interested in either, but instead of forcing it, my mom went out on a limb and found something that I truly love to do. She has always been my biggest cheerleader and support, and I am very lucky to have her in my corner!

Pricing:

• Private Runway Session: $75/hour
• Private Pose Session: $75/hour
• On-site Photoshoot Coaching: $75/hour
• Industry/Agency Discussions: $75/hour

Contact Info:

• Email: [email protected]
• Website: https://www.mymodelreality.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mymodelreality/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mymodelreality
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/mymodelreality

Image Credits
Headshot – Neal Troester, Photos 1 & 2 – Neal Troester, Photos 3& 4 – Jeremy Ellsworth, Runway photos – Unknown Coaching photos