Kathryn Bishop-Leis-- up the catwalk and down-to-earth.
“Growing up, I was the tall, gangly, four-eyed beauty-beast,” laughs Neuhausen resident Kathryn Bishop-Leis. Today, it is impossible to find the awkward teenager in the gregarious, determined entrepreneur and fashion model—whose achievements include runway work in New York, Paris and Milan for the likes of Armani, Versace, Dior and Donna Karan. Though Bishop-Leis is now past the age of the super model set, the wife, mother of two and enthusiastic self-starter continues to pose for the print media and television in between her work in event planning.Born in Ames, Iowa—“in a trailer park! My dad was studying for his PhD in physics at the university”—and raised in Rochester, New York (where her father served as the head of research for Eastman Kodak), Bishop-Leis was given her first indication of what her future would hold by a high school social studies teacher. “Mr. Sherman,” she explains, “was the teacher all the girls adored. He was chic, good looking. He did one of those ‘air golf swings’ when we would walk by him. I always blushed. Once, he said to me ‘one day you’re gonna be very beautiful.’”
Still unsure of her career path, Bishop-Leis headed to New York City to take a bachelors degree in Fashion Management and Merchandising from Pratt Institute. During her college years, the future model, like so many other students, worked at a variety of part-time jobs, including a short stint at the world-renowned Playboy Club on 57th Street. “I was ‘Bunny Kate,’” giggles Bishop-Leis. When asked if the job for which she was scantily clad wasn’t a tad demeaning, the ever-optimistic strawberry blond replies, “No, it was fine, a glorified waitress position.” Subsequent jobs brought Bishop-Leis farther into the “Big Apple experience”—as assistant manager of New York Health and Racket Club, she “sold memberships to Cher and Farrah Fawcett” and gave fashion and skin consultations to elite shoppers at the Estee Lauder counter at Bloomingdales.
At 21, the theme of her natural, classical beauty was once again addressed by a longtime boyfriend. “He taught me the ropes on life in the big city,” she explains. “He took me to Studio 54 and other places where I was introduced to photographers. Before I knew it, I was working with the Elite agency.” The respected modeling firm sent Bishop-Leis to Milan, where she was to work and build her portfolio. Once ensconced in European life, she discovered that “there was money to be made in Switzerland and Germany.” During an appointment in Munich with German beauty/fashion photographer Michael Leis—who, today, is considered to be one of the top professionals in his field—Bishop-Leis felt a spark. For the next six years, the couple met up in the Isar city, between her jobs in Europe, New York, Miami and Los Angeles.
When the pair married, in 1990, Bishop-Leis moved to Munich. A couple of years later, their first child, Anthony, was born. “I modeled right up through the middle of my second pregnancy with Lauren, who is now six. In fact, I had to pose for some shots with unfastened buttons,” she smiles. Now that the early years of motherhood are behind her, Bishop-Leis is not only modeling again—her work can be seen in the quarterly publication Brigitte Woman—the tireless PR type is busy with a teaching position at the Akademie Mode Design in Munich, where she instructs on arranging photo shoots, production and casting, and a growing freelance business. “My event planning service incorporates my passion for interior design. The business took off almost immediately. I have planned Vernissages, meetings and gatherings for corporations, birthday celebrations and I am currently designing a lavish Bat Mitzvah.”
For Bishop-Leis, whose Rochester accent peppers her near-perfect German, Munich is certainly home. She appreciates all the city has to offer culturally and professionally, while enjoying the suburban feel of her sprawling apartment in a garden-flanked, listed building near Rotkreuzplatz. When she speaks of her homeland—where her father, artist mother and five siblings reside—however, she appears to get a bit misty. “Homesick? Yeah, sometimes. It’s unavoidable. There’s nothing like going home for Christmas,” she sighs with a content, far-away gaze. And with that, for a brief moment, the elegant go-getter reveals the child-like “beauty beast” of her youth.
