David Handley, a regular visitor to one of Sydney’s famous beaches, had no intention of becoming Australia’s next top model. He simply wanted to go for his morning swim.
Despite what looked like a fashion show being set up on Tamarama Beach, no one stopped a barefoot Mr. Handley from descending the stairwell toward the sand, a towel draped over his shoulder.
Halfway down the stone steps, the realization dawned. Mr. Handley had intercepted the path of a model opening the show for a collection of resortwear during Australian Fashion Week.
“All the fashionistas at the bottom of the stairs are laughing their heads off,” he said in a phone interview. “The show’s begun, and basically, I’ve usurped the spot of the lead model.”
Video of Mr. Handley, captured by onlookers at the show for the Australian menswear brand Commas, quickly entertained the internet.
Caught under the metaphorical spotlights, Mr. Handley stuck to his original plan. He gave a wave to the crowd before heading to the beach, doing a series of stretches, then diving into the waves. Unbothered by the spectators, he left the same way he arrived, ascending the would-be runway against the flow of more models.
His nonchalance and the collision of what seemed like two different worlds had a number of interpretations. Some declared him “iconic,” a “legend,” even a “diva.” Others called it a quintessentially Australian moment that captured the country’s devil-may-care attitude. Or was it perhaps a piece of performance art in itself, a commentary on the fashion world’s curated culture?
Danté Knows, a musician and model who was filming in the audience, was so amused when Mr. Handley showed up that he shared clips of the incident on social media.
“I found it funny,” he said, adding that it brought a moment of levity to the manicured fashion world.
Richard Jarman, creative director of Commas, said that the beach had been open to the public, part of the concept of the show.
Still, Mr. Jarman said, he had not pictured this particular variable. “The music started, the model was to walk out, and the show caller is like: ‘Guys, go,’” he said.
Then entered Mr. Handley, ahead of the first model.
“He’s basically opened our show,” Mr. Jarman said. “You were kind of in shock for a moment — and then it quite quickly became funny.”
Mr. Handley said he felt guilty for taking away the opening slot from the first model. Before the show, Mr. Handley was better known within Sydney’s cultural scene as the founding director of Sculpture by the Sea, an annual exhibition along the popular Bondi to Tamarama coastline.
But on May 12, he was perhaps the country’s most famous runway model.
Recalling his version of events, Mr. Handley said he had found himself being filmed by phones. Without an obvious exit, he thought he was being discreet by standing to one side and going on with his routine.
“I wouldn’t have had double dessert the night before — or the lunch before that — if I was going to be baring my belly to the world,” he said.
“I had no idea what to do,” he said. “And then as I was about to go into the water, someone yelled out at me: ‘You’re in every shot. Can you get out of the way?’”
A few hours later, while recounting his morning to a colleague, he discovered that clips of his adventure were already going viral and, soon, being shared around the world. Some close watchers suggested that he was wearing an ankle monitor. (Mr. Handley clarified that it was, in fact, a shark deterrent device.) Even his niece in England had gotten wind of the moment.
The next day, a local camera crew caught him for an interview as he returned for his morning swim.
“It’s a very Australian mind-set,” said Mr. Jarman, on why he thought the moment went viral. “He had one mission: to get to the beach that morning before he started the rest of his day.”
Mr. Jarman said the mishap had brought more awareness to his brand, Commas, including ahead of Paris Men’s Fashion Week next month. “That never would have been possible,” he said.
Mr. Handley, for his part, has no plans to walk in any future fashion shows — and does not mind them taking place on the beach, so long as it remains open to the public.
“I can’t deny, it’s been a bit of fun,” he said. “My friends and family have all enjoyed teasing me about it.”
But he wished he hadn’t cut his swim short last week. “I would have liked to have swum longer,” he said. “The waters are a beautiful temperature at the moment.”
Isabella Kwai is a Times reporter based in London, covering breaking news and other trends.
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