Today we’d like to introduce you to Grace Guandu
Grace, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
Hi, my name is Grace and online, I go by Grace Guandu. I am a 23 year old Queer Asian-American activist and multi-faceted artist (model, photographer, graphic designer, stylist, content creator.) I am based in the Lake County/Mentor area but usually work out of the major city of Cleveland, Ohio. I was born in Wuchuan, Guangdong, China and adopted a little under a year after my birth in December of 2002. My biggest influences are my adoptive mother and adoptive grandmother. They exemplify what it means to be strong, independent women and I hope to do the same in my life. Back home are my biological mother, father, brother, 3 sisters, 1 uncles, 1 aunt, and 1 cousin that I regularly keep in touch with. My adoption background is a very important aspect in my life that is very special to me. I wouldn’t change my life any other way, other than that I wish I could be around my biological family more often and not miss life experiences and milestones with them. Being the result of two separate families makes me who I am today. I believe I get my empathy, kindness, openness, and friendliness from my biological family even though the did not raise me. They are some of, if not, the kindest, loving people I have ever met. My adoptive mother has taught me how to be strong in my beliefs, how to be a good person, and a good friend and family member. I am so very thankful for them both. Growing up, I had always been artistic, creative, and loved doing it. I always loved art class and learning new skills. I have always loved fashion as well even though I may not have been good or confident at it in the beginning, but I always had my own distinct style and way of doing things. I got more “seriously” into the Cleveland creative scene when I was in high school and would beg my mom to drive me to photography meet-ups as I first started out as an amateur photographer. I admire every aspect of the creative process and wanted to try my hand at modeling after seeing it at the photography events and believing “Hey, I can do this. I have some good pose ideas and I can follow photographer direction.” I started modeling for fun in January of 2023, walked in two local Cleveland runway shows in 2023, booked my first paid job in January 2024 for the Detroit-based lifestyle clothing brand “You Matter” by Demetrius Harmon, and in 2025, I am now looking for national and international modeling agency opportunities, paid work, as well as select TPF collaborations with other creatives including but not limited to photographers, HMUAs, fashion designers, and stylists, etc. This year, I hope to grow more as a model and creative while staying true to my personal values and beliefs.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Personally, I feel like it can only be a smooth road for the rich and privileged, but I will admit they also face struggles, though very different than the average person and the working class. But in my life of 23 years, I have faced major depressive disorder, anxiety, PTSD, and the constant feeling of not fitting in and being seen as one-dimensional (ex. being labeled as “quiet,” “shy,” ,”nerd.”, etc.). I experienced severe depression for the first time at the young age of 16/17 nearing the end of my freshman year of high school and sustained major depression throughout the rest of my high school career while still having an active depression diagnosis to this day. This experience did not come without stigma being placed upon me by others as well as myself. The severe depression significantly affected my academics and turned a straight-A student into a student who was getting C’s, D’s, and even F’s from not completing assignments and not doing well on tests and assignments. The lack of help or support from my high school administration and many teachers at the time was a very isolating and invalidating experience I will never forget. I placed stigma on myself for seeking help and going to therapy for my depression and now I can proudly say I have been consistently in therapy for roughly 8 years working individually, in a family setting, within my previous romantic relationship, for PTSD, and in outpatient programs. Depression and anxiety affect me daily, mainly in school, work, my interpersonal relationships, and my motivation to do things. Last year I was diagnosed with PTSD, due to multiple traumatic experiences I went through in 2023 and 2024 and I am constantly working on navigating this diagnosis and how it affects how I think and make decisions. Despite these challenges, I like to remain hopeful, optimistic, and motivated by the thought of my adoptive mother, adoptive grandmother, adoptive sister, biological family, and our cats. I can always find reasons to live for myself, but this year I also want to find more reasons to live for myself.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I am an activist and multi-faceted artist (model, photographer, graphic designer, stylist, content creator) but I mainly consider myself a model and aspiring content creator. I am a petite, 5 ft 2, model that specializes in commercial/print, promotional, editorial, and beauty modeling. I also want to get into parts modeling (ex. hands, hair, etc.), fashion, fit, fitness, swimwear, and fashion modeling. Three times in my small, growing modeling “career” I am most proud of are modeling and being paid for a “You Matter” by Demetrius Harmon campaign in January of 2024 that was photographed in Toronto, Canada (Fun fact: I had been a fan of his hoodies since 2019), being featured in October 2023 (Volume 632) issue of Style Cruze magazine for Cleveland-based designer, “Kouture” by Kizzy Kouture , and one of my favorite photoshoots (the silver metallic eye makeup beauty/editorial look by professional Cleveland makeup artist, Mariama Garba, and professional Cleveland photographer, Zelle Johnson) being featured in esteemed fashion entrepreneur, Aimon Ali’s Fashion Talks magazine. I think that my passion for activism, love for others/earth/and life, my high level of ambition to keep going in this competitive industry as well as take chances reaching out to brands/other creatives, and my passion for modeling, creating, as well as deep interest for all aspects of the creative process and the different mediums of art sets me apart from others in this business. I also would like to be a small representation for the Queer, working-class, Asian-American, BIPOC, Chinese adoptee, “disabled”, and neurodivergent communities that routinely are underrepresented in the media that I also had a hard time finding while growing up in America, specifically the midwest.
What makes you happy?
My family, small circle of friends, community, passions, dreams/goals, pets, love for others/self/earth/and life, and love for helping others/making a difference/making the world a better place all make me happy. My family are the most important people in my life and they mean the world to me. They want me to be happy and in return I want them to be happy and I want to be able to provide and give back to them (emotionally, financially, etc.) I am slowly but surely working on developing a small circle of close friends with similar values, passions, and interests that I can rely on and mutually support long-term. I am also a romantic and hope to find a person to spend the rest of my life with, to love and support each other, grow together, and go on adventures with. The Cleveland activist community also makes me happy with all of the work they constantly do to help each other and support targeted, marginalized groups. I am passionate about so many things it is hard to narrow it down, but I can primarily say I am passionate about activism and art. My dreams and goals of making my family and myself happy, making myself and my family proud, giving back to my family/my hometown/my community, traveling the world, learning new languages and cultures, finding lifelong friends passionate about activism and helping others, and doing what I love creatively whatever that may be at the moment all make me very happy even solely at the thought of it.
Pricing:
- Email graceguandu@gmail.com for inquiries including but not limited to: bookings, rates, commissions, TFP, collaborations, etc.
Contact Info:
- Documentary URL: https://tvfilm.newyorkfestivals.com/Winners/WinnerDetailsNew/08908b77-064b-4414-bef3-9de8f50c2435
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/graceguandu
- Twitter: https://x.com/graceguandu
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@GraceGuandu
- Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/graceguandu
- Other: https://tiktok.com/@graceguandu
