Photo: The Heart Truth / CC BY-SA 2.0 (source: Wikimedia Commons)
My Take
Alek Wek is, in my eyes, far more than a model; she is someone who rewrote what the industry was willing to call beautiful. Having fled the civil war in Sudan for Britain in 1991 and broken into fashion at eighteen, she brought her deep skin tone and striking Dinka features to a runway culture that had long ignored them, and she changed the standard rather than conforming to it. Her 2015 inclusion in the BBC 100 Women feels almost overdue. What moves me is that her impact is not decorative but structural: she widened the very idea of beauty for everyone who came after.
1. Profile
- Name (English)
- Alek Wek
- Name (Japanese)
- アレック・ウェック
- Reading
- あれっく・うぇっく
- Born
- April 16, 1977 (age 49)
- Zodiac / Chinese zodiac
- Aries / Snake
- Origin
- Wau, Western Bahr el Ghazal, South Sudan
- Blood type
- Private
- Height
- 2 cm
- Agency
- Private
- Occupation
- actor / model / fashion model
2. Background
- Elementary school
- Private
- Junior high
- Private
- High school
- Private
- University
- London College of Fashion
Awards & achievements
- 2015 BBC 100 Women
3. Relationships
- Spouse
- Private
- Children
- Private
- Parents
- Private
- Siblings
- Private
4. Personality
Motto
Private
6. Links
Frequently asked questions
When was Alek Wek born?
Born April 16, 1977 (age 49).
Where is Alek Wek from?
Alek Wek is from Wau, Western Bahr el Ghazal, South Sudan.
What does Alek Wek do?
Alek Wek works as actor, model, fashion model.
How tall is Alek Wek?
Alek Wek is 2 cm.
Actor — see all → · Model — see all → · More people from South Sudan →
7. About this entry
Tags
- Last updated
- 2026-06-21
Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public items are marked "Private / Unknown". English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.