Back home I had always been comfortable around people. I was the troublemaker, always being funny - that's just who I am. I'm Latina; I've always had that extra little flavor. But when I got to New York, it became about being comfortable with myself in a place where I didn't know many people, and that was the big challenge. Ultimately my personality helped me build relationships with the people I was working with, and I was able to stand out.
Joan SmallsI'm a little bit of everything. Sometimes people think I'm not Puerto Rican, because my name doesn't sound Spanish.
Joan SmallsWhen you look at the world, the world isn't just one palette. It's a beautiful rainbow, and why not have someone to represent that rainbow?
Joan SmallsI felt most beautiful on the red carpet in Givenchys sheer lace dress at a dinner hosted by Givenchy in honor of Marina Abramovich at the closing of her Museum of Modern Art retrospective, The Artist is Present, in 2010. It was the first time I had been dressed for an event, and everybody just fell in love with the dress.
Joan Smalls