ONE IN A SERIES OF PHOTOS AND CAPTIONS RUNNING THROUGHOUT FASHION WEEK SLUGGED "MODELS OF THE WORLD," EXPLORING THE LIVES OF MODELS
Mona Matsuoka, 16, of Tokyo, has her hair and makeup done backstage before the Monique Lhuillier Spring 2015 collection show Friday, Sept. 5, 2014, during Fashion Week in New York. An only child born to a Japanese mother and American father, Matsuoka began modeling in her hometown of Tokyo at age 10. This is her first year modeling internationally. "I'm really homesick," she says, when asked about life on the road. Matsuoka doesn't like the uncertainty that permeates her essentially freelance lifestyle of modeling, but she views her career in the long-term. "I would like to do it my whole life if I can." (AP Photo/Jason DeCrow)