Bastiaan Ninaber

Bastiaan Ninaber is a Dutch model whose watchful expression became associated with the lean menswear image of the late 2000s. An early start at Dior Homme led to a career across European runways and luxury advertising, with a dry sense of humor behind the serious photographs.

He grew up in Numansdorp, a village south of Rotterdam, and began modeling in 2006 after helping a friend stage a show for a local shop. As he recalled in The Fashionisto’s 2009 interview, a photographer took pictures at the event and sent them to Tony Jones, leading to his signing. An informal favor had become an introduction to an international profession.

Dior Homme supplied an early milestone. Bastiaan made his runway debut for the house and appeared alongside Adrian Bosch in its spring 2007 campaign during Hedi Slimane’s tenure. The campaign also brought his first trip to New York. Looking back on the show, he remembered its music and finale with particular affection, a personal attachment to the production that launched his runway career.

By 2009, Bastiaan had appeared on the cover of the debut issue of L’Officiel Hommes Italia and worked with Willy Vanderperre on both Arena Homme+ and Cerruti advertising. His fall 2009 Cerruti campaign established another connection between his magazine work and the luxury houses that booked him. Later advertising for Ermenegildo Zegna, photographed by Inez & Vinoodh for spring-summer 2016, continued that relationship with Italian menswear.

His account of working life was more sociable than his fashion image might suggest. In the same interview series, Bastiaan described group shoots as a chance to work with friends, even when getting everyone into the right photograph took time. He also enjoyed the confusion between himself and fellow model George Barnett. When people congratulated him on Barnett’s Lanvin campaign, his response was characteristically teasing. “I’m obviously better looking than George,” he joked. The solemn face in the photograph belonged to someone happy to laugh at the business of being recognized.