The Stylist’s Notebook is a new series centering the career path of stylists on our radar discussing their largest inspiration sources.
As a new generation of creatives emerges, it’s fascinating to see how many are embracing the role of multi-hyphenates. While some focus on specific disciplines like design, styling, photography, or art, many are driven by a desire to master it all. When speaking to one of my parents’ peers recently he spoke about how much he admired our generation’s comfortability in changing careers and not staying somewhere they do not have a desire to be. We understand not only that it is okay to move on but also to have mastered multiple areas.
Here enters 32-year-old stylist and casting director Katherine Mateo who appears to effortlessly juggle two different career paths without missing a beat. In a video call, the New York-born and New Jersey-raised creative reflected upon her introduction in both fields. She expressed how styling was always her focus, and that casting fell into her lap when she was working early in her career. Her then-boss, Kerby Jean-Raymond the designer behind Pyer Moss, asked her to cast one of his campaigns, and from there, casting was a lane she began taking seriously. Now she frequently works with brands not limited to Who Decides War, Hanifa, and others as a casting manager. Her styling projects have included Wonderland magazine and countless other noteworthy projects.
“Getting a roller set, hearing your mom gossip with the other women—that’s something I grew up with and still carry into my adult life.” Recently, she worked on a styling project with New York City-based brand Awake, where one of the models had her hair pinned up in a doobie, further highlighting her cultural influences. This speaks to the longstanding influence of New York’s transcendent and generational style but also the opportunities that often arise for Mateo. She regularly allows her background to serve as an inspiring force no matter what brand she’s partnering with to bring a specific vision to fruition.
A relocation to Orange, New Jersey was a pivotal moment for the stylist years back. While there Mateo and her immediate family continued to travel back to New York every weekend to visit her grandparents and spend time with her cousins during her younger years. She reflects on how past trends still influence her work today. “It’s very much a throwback with the big hoop earrings, nameplates, and jersey dresses,” she said. Mateo’s connection to New York culture is undeniable, but it’s also her Dominican heritage that deeply shaped her career and references.
Below we caught up with Katherine Mateo to discuss what it’s like juggling her passions with intention, her rise as a go-to stylist and casting director in New York City, and more.
ESSENCE.com: How did growing up in New Jersey and New York as an Afro-Latina shape your career in fashion and influence your work as a stylist and casting director?
Katherine Mateo: I had the best of both worlds. I had the suburban lifestyle to some degree because I was still like, Raven, I feel like a project kid, you know? Though yeah, we were in the suburbs. The school was nice, and sophomores and juniors drive to school, but we were very much still in a rural area too, where we had front lawns and backyards, but it’s still walking by myself [near] the hood at the same time. But you walk up two more blocks, and it turns into the most beautiful neighborhood you’ve ever seen. It’s interesting how there’s a big disconnect there. The high school is where the kids who had a little bit more money were going, and the kids who were from the projects were going. So that’s where the melting pot was happening. But then, every weekend, I’ll be in Dyckman with my aunt, mom, and cousins playing outside. So, I did have the best of both worlds and being exposed to both things constantly added to all the things that I did.
On a recent unreleased project, we made a jersey dress, and I pulled up a picture of myself, from when I was 14, and I had a jersey dress on, and I was like, “I’m my reference. I love that.” From being in front of the buildings in Dyckman and my parents playing Latin music, to me being in Jersey, and my upbringing in Jersey was very, very Black.
There was even a point where my mom had to leave for two months and I was with my best friend and her family. I would not be who I am if I didn’t have two Black women in my corner; which was my dance teacher and best friend’s mom who made me realize what I wanted to do with my life. I could have become much less because I was very mouthy. And then my best friend’s mom is an angel; she’s what anyone needs from her, she provides. So I have all this woman and feminine energy around me, leading me into the right path and making sure I didn’t stray too far.
Was there a moment in your career when you’re like I’m here, and I’ve made it?
I’ve been grateful for a lot of different steps in my career, but the biggest thing that puts me right back into my childhood state, or there’s no way that you would have thought this would have happened at that moment. It would definitely be working with the Jordan Brand team in any capacity, let alone them sending me sneakers. These sneakers I used to beg my mom to buy, and drag her from Payless to Footlocker. This is something that I can’t believe is happening. that you know, like, I get to work with the Jordan team and have my hands in so many different things.
From my clients, Who Decides War to the Jordan team reaching out to me, to speak on a panel, things like that I would have never known would be in my cards. It’s surreal. So, whenever I get a box from Nike, I am like, This is crazy. So that is for sure. And then, my moment of, wow, I’m doing the things that would be two years ago, [when] I styled Kendrick [Lamar], and that to me, was unbelievable.
How do you juggle both styling and casting? I imagine it’s rewarding and challenging.
The thing is, they’re both rewarding because I love the feeling of how someone feels once I feel close to them. To me, it’s, “Oh my God, you feel comfortable, you feel like yourself, you feel fabulous.” That’s what I want to bring to you so you can feel like yourself on camera and feel your best. It’s always rewarding when someone says, “This fit is hard,” or “Oh my God, I look great.” You just gave them the confidence they needed to do their job. You can always see when it’s a yes versus when it’s, “Oh, I don’t know, this isn’t my vibe.”
Even when I get to push a client outside their comfort zone, that’s also rewarding because it’s about trust. Clothes can be very intimate in the sense that you don’t know how I feel about things, and only I can help bring them alive, and then you help me get to the point where we say, “Okay, this is what I like.” Not everything you try with a client will be a hit, so it’s a matter of trusting the process and reading your client—checking in, “How do you feel? Are you good? Are we ready to take the next step? Do you want to go a little bit crazier this time?” Building that trust is crucial.
Casting is rewarding because I get to challenge my client in a new way: “Hey, I know you were thinking about this kind of model or these kinds of faces, but what if we open it up to something different?” I get to contribute to the bigger picture and push the client to start thinking more broadly.
What advice would you give to young creatives looking to break into fashion?
One of the biggest things that worked for me, and that I still do, is not being too good to get your hands dirty. You’d be surprised how many people in front of you sometimes also need help. Honestly, although I went through hell working at all these different places and gaining all these experiences, I’m very grateful for it. Being able to go from a brand to a public relations company, to Marie Claire, to freelancing, social media work, and then doing casting and styling, I now understand the fashion industry as a whole because of this background.
To me, you can never think, “Oh, I’m the best. I’m done learning.” You’re never done learning. There’s always someone you can help out, and always someone you can learn from. It doesn’t matter how many years someone has under their belt sometimes it’s okay to listen to the interns or the assistants.
