Photos by Graham Yelton
Suki Newman
“I grew up in Incheon, South Korea, but I’ve called Birmingham my home over 40 years. I am a wife, a mother to two creative daughters, and a grandmother. Before retiring, I worked as a model, a photographer, and in publishing. These days, I spend my time pursuing my interests – like gardening, reading, volunteering, traveling, and being with close friends and family as much as I can. I love cooking healthy, homemade meals. That’s why strolling the Pepper Place Market in search of fresh veggies and fruit is one of my favorite things to do! My husband and I love to visit either the library or nearby coffee shops and bookstores — where we flip through magazine articles and dream about our next project or trip. We also volunteer at our church—and particularly enjoy working with organizations like Urban Purpose, Feed My Starving Children.
“The photographer for this article is a close friend of one of my daughters, and so I was happy to participate! I used to model—commercial work mostly —when my girls were young. Then, it was gig work to pay the bills.
“But this time it was different. I thought it would be a fun and unique experience—and it certainly was! It was also neat to be a part of a project portraying women of my generation in a dynamic and fashionable way. Although my personal style tends to be a bit more conservative than the wardrobe provided, it was kind of fun “playing dress up.” Expressing the playful side of my personality is usually only something those close to me get to see.
