--- title: Bionic Model: New York Fashion Week description: This model is walking in New York Fashion Week with a bionic arm canonical: https://time.com/4035524/bionic-model-fashion-week/ author: Anne Most article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-09-16T15:23:57.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-10-05T08:32:00.577Z og:title: Meet The Bionic Model Who Walked In New York Fashion Week og:description: “We still have a long way to go” og:url: https://time.com/4035524/bionic-model-fashion-week/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltab80e38af6e8b359/698863d8196cf42bdc0380cc/rebekah-marine.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 5760 og:image:height: 3240 og:image:alt: TOPSHOTS-FASHION-US-FTL MODA og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Meet The Bionic Model Who Walked In New York Fashion Week twitter:description: “We still have a long way to go” twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltab80e38af6e8b359/698863d8196cf42bdc0380cc/rebekah-marine.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Meet the Bionic Model Who Walked in New York Fashion Week > Sponsored content. 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Worth Your Time is TIME's culture recommendation newsletter, edited by culture editor Eliza Berman. Each week it surfaces the books, shows, films and ideas TIME's editors think are worth your attention, and explains why. It is free at time.com/newsletters. #### Does TIME have a culture newsletter? Yes. Worth Your Time is TIME's culture newsletter, published weekly. #### Who writes TIME's culture recommendations? Culture editor Eliza Berman writes Worth Your Time, drawing on TIME's critics and culture desk. #### Is Worth Your Time free? Yes. It is a free newsletter available at time.com/newsletters. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-worth-2026q3/newsletters?i=9bb6ecf3-f506-4231-b8a4-74a077146f57&cr=time-nl-worth-2026q3-v1) ## Video: Rebekah Marine the Bionic Model Takes New York Fashion Week [Watch (HLS stream): Rebekah Marine the Bionic Model Takes New York Fashion Week](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/Ty0U6VtI.m3u8) (2:48)  _Published 2015-09-16. Rebekah Marine isn’t entirely bionic, but she still calls herself The Bionic Model. And at this year’s New York Fashion Week, she sparked a serious conversation about “disabled” models when walking at the FTL Moda runway show._  by [Anne Most](https://time.com/author/anne-most/)  ## Anne Most Sep 16, 2015 3:23 PM UTC Rebekah Marine isn’t entirely bionic, but she still calls herself The Bionic Model. And at this year’s New York Fashion Week, she sparked a serious conversation about “disabled” models when walking at the FTL Moda runway show.  by [Anne Most](https://time.com/author/anne-most/)  ## Anne Most Sep 16, 2015 3:23 PM UTC Rebekah Marine isn’t entirely bionic, but she still calls herself The Bionic Model. And at this year’s New York Fashion Week, she sparked a serious conversation about “disabled” models when walking at the FTL Moda runway show. “Growing up, I was just such a ham for the camera,” Marine told TIME. “Modeling was a natural choice for me.” Born without a right forearm, the 28-year-old wasn’t a natural choice for fashion labels that were hesitant to hire her. But four years ago, she became an ambassador for Touch Bionics and was given the i-limb quantum, an advanced prosthetic arm that moves according to her muscle movements, just as a hand would. She decided not to look at her missing arm as a disability but to embrace it. Her first big break came with Nordstrom in 2015 when she modeled for the store’s anniversary catalog. Her career hasn’t slowed down since. Marine is also an ambassador for the Lucky Fin Project, a nonprofit organization that raises awareness and supports children born without a limb. As an ambassador, Marine travels around the country giving motivational speeches to children with limb differences. She decided that missing an arm wasn’t a crutch, but a beautiful way to help other people with disabilities embrace their beauty and embrace their aspirations. Marine walked the runway this past Sunday with confidence in Vanderbilt Hall at Grand Central Station along with other disabled models with prosthetics as well as [Madeline Stuart](http://time.com/4033572/down-syndrome-model-new-york-fashion-week-madeline-stuart/), who made headlines as the first model with down syndrome to walk in NYFW. The show was produced by Ilaria Niccolini Production. This season, Marine walked for the labels Anna’s Loud and Archana Kochhar. “I think it’s so cool to be at the front of the line of this change, and being able to open the door and inspire others to open their minds to different models,” Marine said. ## Transcript [ MUSIC ] I think the energy that comes out of Fashion Week is what excites me the most. Everyone is just so excited to be here. There's Lights, cameras, just tons of people, it's so fast paced and I think that's why I really enjoy being here. My name is Rebekah Marine, most people know me as the, bionic model. [ LAUGH ] I think growing up I was just such a ham for the camera modeling was a natural choice for me. Hearing a lot of rejection isn't easy for anybody, and when it's based on your looks it's really hard to embrace because you can't really change the fact that I have one arm. The fashion world has, Grown accustomed to seeing diversity, but I don't think we're fully there yet. I think we still have a long ways to go until we really fully incorporate disabled models, as just a normal model. [ MUSIC ] The walk. The walk is probably the most nerve- racking thing about Fashion Week because there's a science to it. You've gotta have your hips out, and left foot crosses over the right but the right can't cross over the left. There's just so much to the walk and when you go out there Trying not to think about not trip. That's probably the biggest concern I have. Don't trip. It's definitely humbling to be a role model to a lot of kids who have interest being a model or just wanting to pursue any dream really. I heard a lot of kids come up to me and say, Hey you've changed the way that I thought about My career choice and have kids who now want to live outside of their comfort zones. [ MUSIC ] I remember a woman came up to me, she was born without a forearm, as well. She said, I've been hiding my arm my entire life. You've given me so much hope and now I, Not afraid anymore, and you've changed my life. And that was probably the most powerful moment in my life, and that's when I realized this is what I'm here to do. I think it's so cool to just kind of be at the front of the line of this change, and being able to inspire others to open the doors And open their minds to different models, it's a humbling experience. I think it's so important to just own it and not be held back by those insecurities because we all have them. 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