Zhang Ziwei, one of the youngest winners of China Model Star Contest, says she eats like a rabbit. PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY

Zhang Ziwei, 17, shares her fashionable exploration with METRO's Xu Fan.

It was the first day of the 2010 Beijing International Automotive Exhibition and 17-year-old Zhang Ziwei, wearing a short skirt and walking on a set of 10-cm heels, walked up to a luxury Porsche, smiling and posing professionally. The sexy model attracted a lot of attention and shouts of "Hey, beauty, turn here" as the cameras flashed.

But within hours, she was back wearing her baggy T-shirt in her 15-sq-m room in the three-bedroom apartment she shares with two others and studying her middle school textbook.

"I want to gain high scores in school that will help me get admitted to a good university," she said, while unconsciously smiling like a child.

For the 17-year-old model who won the 2009 China Model Star Contest, the world easily switches between glittering stage and classroom full of teenagers.

Zhang, who is one of the youngest top models signed to Beijing-based agency China Bentley Culture Development Co Ltd, sat down with METRO to talk about her fashionable experiences in the capital.

Q & A

Q: What led to your interests in modeling?

A: I grew to 1.74-m high when I was studying at the second year of my junior high school. My mother felt so worried about my humpback created by the height. She sent me to a local modeling school during the summer vacations in the hope of correcting my posture. Since then, I fell in love with the feeling of stepping onto the catwalk. In the year I graduated from junior high school, I participated in a local teen model contest and won the title.

Q: How do you feel about the city?

A: It's so big. Everything happens at a rapid pace. People work in an efficient way and hardly leave any spare time to relax. It's easy to encounter traffic jams on the road, which really makes me crazy sometimes.

Q: Have you encountered any trouble in Beijing?

A: Not too much. Maybe because I'm young, the top designers are all tolerant with me. But I have spent a lot of time on renting a home. The housing price is really so expensive in the capital. In the very beginning, I even went to a remote area known as Yanjiao, where the house rents are comparatively cheap. When my mother and I arrived there, a new message on my cell phone read: "Hebei residents welcome you". So funny, I then realized I'd already left Beijing and arrived in Heibei province. Definitely, it's too far for me, as I have to work in the downtown.

Q: How about your residence?

A: Luckily, I found a room which charged 1,500 yuan each moth. Two friends in the fashion industry rent the apartment with me. We have three bedrooms and it is located in Dongcheng district. My mother sleeps in the only big bed in the room with me. I feel satisfied and happy.

Q: When did you come to Beijing?

A: The 2009 China Model Star Contest was my second modeling contest. I won the champion and was picked by China Bentley to be a signed model. I agreed to sign an eight-year contract and then my mother quit her job and moved to the city with me.

Q: What's it like where you grew up in Shandong province?

A: My home there is a 140-sq-m apartment. But it doesn't matter, I think it's a worthy sacrifice for my modeling career.

Q: Where do you hang out in the city?

A: The 798 art district. Mostly, I prefer to stay at home with my mother. I like studying and hope to enter some top design colleges. When I have free time, I like to sit on the sofa, watch television programs and eat vegetables. Mother and I eat like two rabbits.

Q: What kind of shows have you participated in since you moved to Beijing?

A: I have modeled for the 2010 China Fashion Week and 2010 Beijing International Automotive Exhibition.

I have modeled for some famous designers' clothes and branded underwear.

Q: Did you feel embarrassed modeling underwear?

A: Not on the stage because all of the models are wearing the same things but I would be embarrassed if any of my classmates had seen me. Anyway, I have a good shape.

Q: Teen models seem to have become a trend in the fashion industry. What do you think about it?

A: Teen models have huge potential.I believe the future of the fashion industry will be dominated by teenagers.