By Isake Tom

Fashion mag readers have probably spotted this dark eyed, dark haired beauty in numerous editorials over the past few years. This week I stumbled upon this Somali stunner and was very impressed with her work. I became more excited when I realized that she is also a Canadian gal.

Standing at 5”11, Ayan Elmi has graced the covers of magazines; Life and Fashion in 2007 and Lou Lou in 2008. With a breathtaking spread in Vogue Italia shot earlier this year by world renowned photographer Greg Lotus, Elmi’s gorgeous cheekbones and killer legs were on full display. Some believe that she along with counterpart Fatima Said represent a new era of East African models in the industry since the debut of supermodel’s Iman and Liya Kebede.

Ayan, who now calls Toronto home is signed to NEXT Modeling agency along with other agencies in South Africa and New York. Since her debut she has walked the runways for top designers such as Jean Paul Gaultier, Yahya, Hermes, Elie Tahari and Mark le Bihan just to name a few.

Related Articles:

• Model’s Corner: Mia Amber Davis (July 25, 1974 – May 10, 2011)
• Model’s Corner: Marquita Pring
• Model’s Corner: Renee Thompson
• Model’s Corner: Ajak Deng
• Model’s Corner: Gaye Mcdonald