Parker Van Noord: Modeling, Tradition in the Family

In fashion these days, there is no shortage of sons-of, progeny who have parlayed their famous last names into social media fame and the requisite modeling careers. Most are the descendants of actors and musicians, but rarer is the second-generation model—a somewhat surprising fact given how closely appearances are tied to genetics. Even rarer still is the father-son duo, which brings us to Peter Van Noord  and his father Andre Van Noord  who can count an impressive three decades of success in the business.

 Being the son of one of the most successful and long-lived models in the industry might seem a tough act to follow, but with a run of major campaigns and editorials, including the latest cover of Vogue Netherlands Man, it’s clear Parker is striking his own path in the industry.
Now 20, van Noord’s first introduction to modeling came at 14 thanks to his father, who asked if he wanted to shoot a magazine cover together with Phillippe Vogelenzang .He was quickly signed after that, but he says that at that young age he had little understanding of what exactly was going on. “I never really had an idea of what my father was doing,” van Noord admits. “I didn’t have an overview of what modeling was and we never really talked about it.”

Van Noord estimates that he and his father have shot 9 campaigns together by now, and find themselves working together about two or three times a year. With notable appearances in this spring’s Mango campaign and Hercules Magazine and on the Balmain runway, he is now finding his own way, but he admits that his father’s legacy is still not always easy to shake. “Most of the time they know him, like Mario Testino couldn’t stop talking about him,” he laughs. “He was like, ‘I shot your father back in the 90s, he was always so sexy.’ I’m like, ‘Yeah yeah yeah…’”
Van Noord shies away from direct comparisons with his father, insisting instead that his direction is different, and purposely so. “I try to live up to him,” he says. “It’s no use doing the same thing if you can’t try to do better than your father, although in this situation it’s hard to do better than him. I used to always find it quite hard to be compared to my father, but I’m actually managing to make my own name now and it’s ok.”

When asked if he expects to have a thirty-years-and-counting career as a model like his father’s, Van Noord is quick to reject the idea. “I have no idea how he managed to do that for so long,” he laughs. Currently in his last year studying international business and management, he says he wants to combine his business knowledge with his creative mind in some way, even if he isn’t sure exactly how yet. He spends his free time on photography and writing fiction and tries to keep modeling just one part of his busy life. “I don’t know whether it’s something that I will ever do full time, because I like to enjoy myself with other things too,” he says. “I like to make something myself rather than being the product.”