Model Aaron Rose Philip talks about her accomplishments and sets new life goals for 2024

Many people like to start the year with a new year’s resolution or two and model Aaron
(pronounced A-ron) Rose Philip is no exception. She shared with Club Curran that she has three
hopes for 2024: to engage in more intellectual pursuits, to lean into her intuition, and to share
meals with her loved ones. On December 12, 2023, Aaron and I spoke over the phone to discuss
these hopes for 2024 and to reflect on the accomplishments she’s achieved to date:

The following interview has been edited and condensed.

Zahra: I’m curious to know what’s exciting to you about intellectualism.

Aaron: Most of the time when people think about fashion, they think about the glitz and glamour
of taking photos and walking a runway and being the face of a campaign. The fashion industry
has a lot of work to do in terms of still understanding the perspectives of different people of the
industry. Intellectualism was a goal of mine to hone in on more because I realized the real power
of the voice and brain. You can create unity through knowledge. You can create perspectives
through knowledge. Centering knowledge creates something that is so long-lasting and can
create longevity within everything that you do.

And a lot of people are actually very disappointed because of the lack of intellectualism in the
fashion industry. We’re seeing it right now with a lot of, especially in recent times, with a lot of
the rhetoric around, for example, honestly, Gaza and Palestine, Israel. So intellectualism leads to
a collective conscience that is not found in my field in a way.

Zahra: I’d also love to hear about how you access your intuition and what intuition means to you.

Aaron: Honestly, intuition came to mind because intuition is something that I wish I followed
more. I have a protective intuition that will give me an internal alarm or red flag. Throughout my
life, honestly, if I was able to follow my intuition and my gut more, that could have saved me

from a lot of unfortunate human experiences of pain. Which is inevitable. It’s always good to
armor yourself and protect yourself and to love yourself. Having an intuition that stops you from
doing something on an impulse can really help you in the long run.

Zahra: As for your third goal for 2024, why is focusing on sharing meals so important to you
now?

Aaron: [Sharing meals] is very exciting, and it makes me feel warm on the inside. Doing
something that you actively love already with people that you love. How much safer could you
possibly feel? How much more free could you feel? How does it get better than in that moment
to take part in something you love, around people who you really feel held by? I really think
that’s one of the best, most pleasurable things between human beings.

I’m manifesting and affirming next year if it opens up the doors to opportunities to travel abroad.
Because my job, modeling, sometimes a client can bless you and take you to a new country or
somewhere different. So if that does happen, by the grace of every higher power and God, I
would just love to experience joy through eating and the connection of people through food and
also the connection of culture through food.

Zahra: What are some things in your career that you’re excited about right now or in the future?

Aaron: My likeness currently is featured in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, in a new exhibition
to represent the designer Collina Strada. It’s the first time a wheelchair-using mannequin has ever
been featured in the Met. So I feel like that’s not even real. It feels like AI! And I just feel like so
lucky to be able to do this for my community. Because I feel like the [fashion] industry has, for
the longest time of history, neglected disabled people [and kept disabled people from] been being
able to consume, enjoy, or work in fashion. To have the act of solidarity by the Met is really
gratifying, it’s inspiring, and it makes me happy.

And I just love that, also, the exhibition is literally women dressing women, so Hillary, the
designer of Collina Strada, she’s a woman dressing a woman, me. I feel it’s very inspiring. And

also, we are both queer women. I’m pansexual, and Hillary is queer, and it’s just really
wonderful. So I’m really, really happy and really, really grateful. It’s a dream come true to the
highest degree. That’s very exciting to me. And then to start off, the new year in 2024, I’m going
to be hosting a Ted Talk in Berkeley where I talk about the inequities and inequalities of the
fashion industry.

Zahra: Wow. Berkeley is my hometown. That’s giving me chills.

Aaron: That’s amazing, I love to hear that!

Zahra: Speaking of food, Berkeley is an amazing food destination, and I will definitely send you
a few pointers of where to go grab a few bites.

Aaron: Oh my God, please do. I’ll be there for three days. So maybe in the three days, I can get
something cute to eat with my agents and my dad. You know?

Zahra: Oh, yes. Already, we’re manifesting these great meals! I see that.

Aaron: Yes, I’m excited!

Zahra: Is there anything else you wanted to express as we’re here?

Aaron: I just want to express my gratitude to Club Curran and Tommy. And a big thank you for
having me, honestly, and how nice it is to talk to you as well.