Skaterboys and model fans converged in the basement of Etnies NYC showroom Wednesday night, PBR and coconut water in hand, to celebrate a new collaboration between Nicole Trunfio, Milk Studios, Hunter Barnes, and SHUT.
Along the otherwise plain walls, skateboard decks hung as decoration, each featuring the same image of Nicole, which was shot by Mr. Barnes. ”Hunter’s a really good friend of mine and I’ve always been a huge fan of his work,” explained Nicole. “Rassi of Milk Studios said, ‘Why don’t you shoot Nicole as a whole series,’ in a Marilyn Monroe style collaboration. Hunter’s the only person I shoot nude photos with actually. We really connect. We showed Rassi and he was like, ‘Let’s make a skateboard.’ There’s only 200 so we’re giving them out to people we love.” Thus the project was born.
As a skater herself, the end result proved to be perfect in more than one way. “I don’t do many tricks,” said Nicole modestly of her talent. “I can do a 180 and a little ollie, but there’s not much time to skateboard. I love sports though; I ride dirt bikes. That’s like my number one.”
One night after celebrating her birthday, Nicole was still all smiles as she told Modelinia about just how creative her boyfriend Ryan Leslie was with the celebration. “My favorite band is Francis and The Lights, they’re about to go on tour with Drake, and my boyfriend had them perform a private concert!” Bravo boyfriend.
