Photos KENDALL CONRAD
Makeup JO STRETTELL
Where are you from?
Los Angeles, CA
What do you do?
I’m interested in meeting creative people and collaborating. I am always learning. I write. I started modeling at a young age and have learned so much about myself throughout the span of that time to now. I love photography, fashion, and images. I am fortunate enough to have worked with Peter Lindbergh. Watching him work and how kindly he treated people was magnetic. I am a huge lover of animals and nature. I am committed to our planet and to the protection of our seas, land, and wildlife. I am always evolving, studying and curious.
Kenya wears the Festival Bracelet II, Wavy Bar Cuff, Origins Ring Cuff, Flat Ring, Rounded Ring Pendant and Echevaria Pendant. All shop-able below.
Lifegoal?
I think a clear idea of my life goal in its entirety is yet to be determined, but what stands out is that I want to make people feel less alone. I want to find people in their mess, which we all have in different capacities, and make them feel seen, heard and understood in whatever way that I can. I want to be a small contribution to a much larger community and bigger picture. This will always be the undermining mission in whatever that I do.
What inspires you?
The underdog, the underestimated, the survivor. People who have risen from deep pain, challenges, and tribulations in their life inspire me.
"The perseverance and also the gentleness despite their pain that people muster up to take another step in this life when all odds are against them, those are the people who inspire me most."
Talk to me about your love for horses. When did you start riding, for how long?
Horses became the love of my life very early in my childhood and my first big dream was to become a professional jumper. I grew up going to the Equestrian Center every day that I wasn’t in school from sunup to sundown. I trained seriously for horse shows up until my last two years of high school, but I also just relished in being around these animals. It really did something to me, and it still does. The barn was like my sanctuary and almost like a form of mediation for me because I didn’t think of anything else when I was there. I only thought about what was in front of me which was the most magnificent animal that I could talk to without words and had to put all of my trust in and vice versa. Here was this 2000-pound animal who I was both responsible for and who I also called a teammate. I feel grateful to have grown up loving, caring for, learning from, and obsessing over horses. It was very grounding for me. One day I would love to have a barn of my own. This will be my lifelong love story.
Kenya wears the Chain Collar Necklace, Thick Rounded Hoops Small, and Crystal Hoops. All shop-able below in gallery.
Kenya wears the Kasbah II Ring, the Cresta I and II Rings, Hook Bangle with Rock I Pendant, Ribbon Chain, Grandita and Origins Rings and Naked Bangle I. All items are shop-able below in gallery.
Please tell me about your writing. What do you like to write? How often? Are you working on any writing currently?
I write every day for myself. It is a goal and dream to someday publish a work of my own. Writing has always been the way that I felt that I could reveal myself best; the most truthfully and the most thoroughly. It is my favorite form of expression whether I’m the one who is conveying something, or I am absorbing the words of another. It is how I feel that I can best connect with or experience the most vulnerable state, emotion or history of someone else. When one writes, it is as if we are cutting ourselves wide open and showing ourselves to the world for all that we are, including the darkest corner of ourselves, our peculiar little oddities, or the pain that we carry around with us every day that we don’t dare ever really talk about with anyone. Writing connects us and reveals us to one another. For me personally, writing means looking life in the eye. It is the decision to not look away at the ugly, or scary, or painful thing in the corner. It is the truth. Even when your imagination runs wild and you are in the midst of creating a story that is all your own, the truth is woven in. And it is the truth in our favorite pieces of literature that make us feel less alone. As one of my favorite writers and revolutionary thinkers once said,
“You think your pain and heartbreak are unprecedented in the history of the world, but then you read. It was books that taught me that the things that tormented me the most were the very things that connected me with all the people who were alive, or who had ever been alive.” James Baldwin
Do you have any dreams to be an actress like your mother, Nastassja Kinski?
As of right now, I don’t think that acting is for me. I have a much greater interest in working behind the camera and have always had a strong curiosity of directing. I’ll hear a song, or something will inspire me in everyday life on the street that urge me to tell a story that is beginning to take form. I think that is an interest that I would someday love to explore and learn about.
Kenya wears the Chain Bangle, the Tiger Eye Hoops and the Thin Rounded Posts. All shop-able below.
You have been exposed to amazing music all your life, thanks to your Dad, Quincy Jones. What is your favorite music and latest bands?
I love music of all kinds and I don’t stick to any particular genre. But I do have favorite artists from Bill Withers, Aretha Franklin, Elton John, and David Bowie to Sade, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Oasis, and The Cranberries. In regards to today’s music, I love Vampire Weekend, Frank Ocean, Taylor Swift, HAIM, Kendrick Lamar and Billie Eillish. I appreciate connecting with people over music, so I created a playlist on my Instagram highlights where I’m always adding my favorite songs.
Kenya wears the Toggle Chain I Necklace as a belly chain, the Toggle Chain I bracelet, the, Naked Cuff III, Festival Bracelet, and Thin Cuff. All items are shop-able below in gallery.
Who is your favorite author? What are some of your favorite books/audiobooks, and films/shows?
James Baldwin, Virginia Woolf, Michael Cunningham, Mary Oliver and Toni Morrison are some of my favorite writers. I grew up loving Sofia Coppola films, especially Lost in Translation, The Virgin Suicides and, later, Somewhere.
Kenya wears the Islero Bangle, the Pacha Wrist Wrap, Naked Bangle I, Grandita Hoops and Thin Rounded Hoops. All shop-able below in gallery.
What are your rules to live by/manifesto?
Be kind. Whether you’re interacting with someone you’ve known for years or a complete stranger. We never really know what someone is going through, what they have to return home to at the end of the day or the fact that they are barely getting through the day even though they put on a smile.
"I think it is vital to frequently supplement our own emotional intelligence with the question: What could this person be surviving or persevering through today?"
This does not mean that one must become a martyr or forget one’s own personal boundaries, it is just an awareness that, as Zadie Smith has said, “Other people are as real as you are.” (Of course.) But I think it’s easy to get so wrapped up in what we are experiencing from our perspective that we can sometimes forget that what we are seeing out of someone else may not be the full story. So, I believe that whenever you come to that choice, whether that be in a mundane or monumental moment, be a light for someone.
Kenya wears the Grande Ring II, Oblique Posts and Ball Hoops II, shop-able below in gallery.
Female hero and why?
Christmas tree farms and Stevie Wonder. What the sun touches in our neighborhood at 4pm. The car ride home and grocery store aisles. The comfort of a movie playing from the other room. Seattle and the hem of our napkins. That moment before the plane takes off or the way that the mattress shifts when someone sits on the edge of a bed that I’m in. The ocean and a cup of tea. I see her, I hear her, I feel her - everywhere....KEEP READING
The Ribbon Chain Bracelet in Tangerine with the Ball Chain Necklace worn as a bracelet.
How do you unwind or de-stress?
Music, literature and going into nature.
Beauty routine/skincare regime?
My talented friend Andie Jane makes an all-natural moisturizer that I use called The Cream.
Do you have a favorite recipe to share?
For wellness, I’ve been taking ashwagandha drops by Your Mornings. I’ve also been starting the day with The Beauty Chef products which I’m a big fan of. All of their formulas focus on gut health ingredients. Regarding recipes, this is ridiculously simple because I am not skilled in the kitchen whatsoever, but one of my favorite easy snacks is sliced avocado with lots of ponzu sauce.
Kenya wears the Toggle Chain Anklet
Who is your style icon, and why?
Princess Diana. Aside from the fact that she exuded both a vulnerability and a strength that cannot be replicated. I just love her understated elegance that also gave air to a cool factor. I love the way that she would mix pieces that were ultra-feminine with pieces that had a masculine feel as well. She was chic, easy, and wore the clothes in a way that weren’t overly self-aware, even if she was in a gorgeous gown. Her looks were never over the top - even when she was dressed in athleisure she always looked put together. The way that she carried herself contributed to the look just as much as the clothes themselves did which I think speaks to anyone whose style that I personally admire.
What is your favorite KC item, and how do you like to style it?
The gold Imaan Hoops II. My favorite thing about this hoop is that you can wear it with a casual outfit, and it will effortlessly elevate the look, or you can wear it with a dressier look, and it will contribute just the right amount of accessory. It’s an earring that can do it all which is perfect for me because I love to have a signature earring that is easy and works as my go-to.
What KC accessories do you like to wear during the day/night?
The Origins Double Ring Cuff because it is so delicate and wearable for daytime, and the Grandita Ring makes for such a beautiful statement piece for a night out.
Which piece/pieces from the new collection do you want the most?
The Project Zero pendant is special and a piece that I am very proud to wear because it represents a contribution to a healthier ocean. Proceeds from the sale of this pendant helps to fund the protection and restoration of a specific piece of the ocean and each one purchased comes with a unique coordinate of the exact spot that is being protected by the purchaser.
