After enjoying a self-imposed absence from fashion for some years, Lily Donaldson found herself up a mountain in the Lake District with photographer Tyrone Lebon. Their mud-soaked mission? To capture the British model cradling ’s Rocking Horse bag against a breathtaking natural landscape that would best represent the brand’s affiliation with the great outdoors. They hadn’t bargained on the “crazy terrain”.
Still, Donaldson, back in front of the lens – “It didn’t take too long, but I was like, ‘woah!’” – is not only a seasoned professional, but a keen adventurer. As an ambassador for the International Medical Corp, Donaldson has spent her time away from the runway on humanitarian trips to Ethiopia and Somalia with the National Geographic Society. In 2019, she decided to join the dots between the two worlds she straddles and set out with the photographers Ed Kashi and Erika Larsen to teach photography to students in the Melkadida refugee camp.
“I wanted to put the camera on the other side, rather than people always photographing them,” says the 37-year-old, who then took their pictures to the UN headquarters in New York for a 2023 exhibition, entitled . The arresting visuals now feature in an accompanying punctuated with the work of Somali poets. “I’ve always had amazing experiences in fashion, but I made a conscious decision to have a break and connect with myself in new ways,” she explains of diversifying her creative portfolio.
“I think it.
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