Modeling, especially on the men’s side, is not a career known for its longevity. Rare is the male model who can work, as Andre Van Noord did, for more than three decades at a top level. Van Noord, who died earlier this month of a brain tumor at the age of 54, was discovered at the age of 21 at a Rolling Stones concert, and throughout his time in the industry he exuded a rock-star swagger that was equally appealing in edgy high-fashion editorials or sleek suiting campaigns.
One of our longtime Icons, van Noord was never content to only model, no matter how successful that line of work was for him— he also worked as a photographer and actor and had fruitful collaborations with artists like Marlene Dumas and his wife Marisca Voskamp van Noord. A favorite of Jean-Baptiste Mondino and Matthew Brookes, van Noord was that uncommon model who continued to appear on magazine covers and in advertising campaigns into his 40’s and 50s, his hair a little grayer and his face a little more creased, but with his inimitable spark intact.
In recent years, he began to pass his legacy on to his son Parker Van Noord, himself now a successful model whose first experience in front of the camera came thanks to Andre, who asked him to join for a cover shoot with Philippe Vogelenzang for Knack Weekend. “I had the true pleasure of working with Andre several times, but a special moment was when I shot Andre together with his son, when Parker was only 14 years old,” Vogelenzang recalls. “It was Parker’s first editorial and I witnessed a small moment of their love and bond. I saw a super proud father who was stunned by his son’s instant professionalism. Parker hardly needed any directions. There was no other choice than treating him as a full-grown adult already, so that’s what Andre did. You can imagine how sweet this moment was between them. It was very touching and I am sure this was just a glimpse of their strong and loving bond they shared as father and son.”
In an industry whirling through constant change, van Noord was an exemplar of constancy and consistency. Fashion is fickle and always looking to move on to the next, which makes van Noord’s endurance an even more meaningful testament to his personality, his charm, and his spirit which refused to settle. He will be missed by many in the industry who worked with him and the rest of us who admired him from afar.
