Puma Rose Buck: "It Would Be Ridiculous To Live in Our Time and Not Be a Feminist"
Sybyl Buck was a grunge icon with scarlet hair, revolutionizing the catwalk in the 90s before leading her own life as an artist and musician outside of fashion. Today, Puma Rose follows in her mother's footsteps with her first fashion week debut for the most in-demand and creative designers, from Marc Jacobs to Miuccia Prada. And again, in rebellious, cherry red...
Just a month ago in Milan, Rose walked the catwalk consisting of psychedelic prints as part of the Miu Miu parade in confident strides: a vision of a neo-punk princess dressed in a long pink dress with an Empire waist ,embroidered with pearls, red ballet flats, 80s glasses and purple gloves. With her long red hair and her rebellious air ahout her, Puma Rose emotionally reminded the guests of the same catwalk show of an icon of 90s fashion: Sybyl Buck, top model, queen of grunge, and her mother.
Puma only participated in a handful of parades for the 2020-21 fall-winter season, but it was a significant roster, to say the least: Marc Jacobs, Koché, Marine Serre and Matty Bovan.
She follows in the footsteps of her mother who, in 1991, challenged all the traditional notions of modeling. Born in Versailles, but having grown up in Connecticut, Sybyl Buck arrived in Paris (her longtime dream) to study art, and tried to finance her education by becoming a model. She played bass, wore Dr. Martens,in a punk rock t-shirt with holes, and skates between her dates. Buck goes on fashion shows and a few commercials but, succumbing to her new loneliness, the pressures of business, and the nostalgia for her rock-and-roll lifestyle, she decided to celebrate her own individuality before conforming to what was expected of her.
She had her hair dyed bright red, just one year after her arrival. This was an act of rebellion which worried her agents at the time but which will become her signature and standard, just as with her piercings in the nose and on the tongue. Jean Paul Gaultier, to whom she suck out her tongue to during casting, immediately hired her, asking her to do it again on the podium. Other designers soon followed, including four visionary iconoclasts: Karl Lagerfeld, Alexander McQueen, John Galliano and, more surprisingly, Yves Saint Laurent who posed in 1995 with her, dressed in a sheath of red satin and black velvet in his living room, in front of Le Profil Noir by Fernand Léger, under the lens of Jean-Marie Périer. Sybyl Buck broke all stereotypes, paving the way for other unconventional beauties. Ever the non-conformist, she left the fashion industry in 1997 at the peak of her career and set up a loft in a recording studio in New York.
After a series of music projects and tours, she decided to have a child with guitarist Chris Traynor, and Puma Rose was born in Brookly in a purely musical environment. When Puma turned 8, Sybyl moves to Topanga Canyon, California, and becoming a yoga teacher specializing in therapeutic yoga.
Puma went to New York to study a year ago remains very close to her mother, who acts like a role model to her. And things came full circle - Sibyl came specially to Paris to walk with Puma Rose on the runway for Marine Serre: an initiation, symbolic passage and a fashion highlight, as Puma tells us from New York in an interview...
L'Officiel: How did you feel when marching together with your mother for Marine Serre?
Puma Rose: It was a sweet and special moment for both of us. I admire my mother so much that it seemed right to end my first season walking with her.
Did you dye your hair red in tribute to your mother's legendary color in the 90s?
I wish I could say that I thought about it, but last year, in a dull moment, I just bought a dye to get red hair. As soon as I looked at myself in the mirror, I said to myself “ yes, it's me”. I absolutely feel like a redhead, and I also like the idea of paying a little tribute to my mom who means so much to me.
Is there a story behind your first name Puma Rose?
My parents gave me this first name in reference to Puma Jones, the singer and dancer of the reggae group Black Uhuru. And Rose is my aunt's middle name.
What are your first memories related to going backstage in the music world?
All my first memories are backstage! I have been on tour with my parents since I was in my mother's womb. My favorite memories are those of a tour with my parents in San Francisco, where I would sneak in to eat delicious Chinese food. Or watch my father play from behind the scenes. For me he is the greatest guitarist of all time.
What were the highlights of your first fashion week?
I have so many! Being backstage at Matty Bovan made me feel like I was in a science fiction adventure film, with all the girls wearing magnificent headdresses and huge wigs like alien princesses. At Miu Miu, I felt like a princess at the ball; I was completely fascinated by the beauty of all the girls. And at Marc Jacobs, the energy was unmatched. We could all feel that we were part of something more important than a simple parade. I watched the dancers rehearsed backstage, amazed. It was truly a surreal experience to have the opportunity to work with such fashion industry legends, like makeup artist Pat McGrath, one of the sweetest women I have ever met, or hair stylist Guido Palau who made me the most magnificent curly crowns I could have dreamed of for Miu Miu, or even Katie Grand who gave me the coolest looks I have worn.
What is your lucky charm?
I have a lot. The first that comes to mind is my Jupiter-themed charm necklace. Jupiter is the planet of expansion, optimism and luck, which are my three guiding principles. My mother and I have assorted ones.
How would you define your style?
In constant evolution, always comfortable, vintage and a little androgynous.
What's next for you, after modeling?
I compose a lot of music and now that I'm back in New York, I'm going to start recording music with two of my friends. We plan to play a few concerts here over the next few months. I'm really excited. I also always write, I write in my journal every day, poetry, prose or just thoughts.
Why did you choose New York and could you describe a perfect day for you there?
A perfect day in New York would certainly be a day with lots of sun, spent in my favorite garden on Elizabeth Street and cooking lots of good food, with the people I love the most.
As for your lifestyle, are you passionate about yoga? Are you vegan?
I wouldn't say I'm addicted, but I do a lot of yoga. It's more a mental practice than a physical one for me, I don't really like very difficult lessons where we are sweaty. It is very important to dedicate the time to check your body and mind daily. And no, I'm not vegan, but I try to be vegetarian as much as possible, for the planet and for animals. But I would be hard pressed to do without eggs.
Do you consider yourself a feminist?
Certainly, it would be ridiculous to live in our time and not be. I think that being an activist is imperative because ecological and social problems are becoming more and more acute.
Who is your role model?
In terms of art and writing, Patti Smith, I also like her androgynous style and her vulnerable and sincere spirit. But my great models will always be my parents and my grandmother.
Styling assistant: Gabriela Cambero
Photo assistant: Jack Orton
Hair: Muriel Vancuwen
Makeup: Sergio Corvachio
