Meet Bella Sparks | Model & Aspiring Professional Body Piercer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Bella Sparks and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Bella, what do you attribute your success to?
The biggest part of my success today has everything to do with who I was. Something I tell everyone is: pay attention to your inner child. Especially if you had a hard childhood and you weren’t able to fully express yourself. Dig through all of that, make peace with the circumstances that shaped you into who you are, heal, and then get back to what you were passionate about in your childhood. Every chance I get I try to let younger Madison live through present day me. The way I dress, the creative projects I do, my taste in music, my hobbies and interests are all outlets for little me to be the person she dreamed of. A lot of people don’t realize that a lot of the things they’re passionate about today come from what they loved doing as a kid. The life I currently live is what kept me alive during my youth, when all I had for a bit was hope that one day I would be able to express myself in every way to the fullest. I owe everything to younger me, and although I’m just getting started with my creative career, I have nothing but huge goals for the near future & an even bigger resolve to execute them.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I was on the fence for much of 2023 about whether or not modeling was something I wanted to pursue. Everytime I would get close to starting I would think of a reason to put it off another week. I thought the only way I could be successful at this was if all the circumstances were perfect. The next thing I knew a year went by, it was 2024 and I was still telling myself to wait for the right time. I slowly started to understand that if you’re truly passionate about something, there will never be perfect circumstances for you to start, you have you start anyway. Everything will fall into place the way it’s supposed to but you have to be the one to take that leap of faith. Something a friend of mine recently told me was “people suffer from two types of pain; the pain of growth and the pain of regret”. I didn’t want to get to the point where before I knew it life passed me by and I’m old and grey and thinking how silly it was of me to have missed so many opportunities all because I wanted to have things done “the right way”. Looking back it was definitely fear that kept me from taking action. The best things in life are on the other side of fear and its so important getting comfortable with being uncomfortable and doing the things you know will be good for you even (and especially) when they scare you a little bit.
Making the decision to finally put myself out there and try to make a name for myself is the best thing I’ve done for myself. Everyday I try to live my life to the fullest extent and take every opportunity that I feel is right for me. I’ve met some of the most talented and down to earth people while being a part of the creative community in Atlanta, I couldn’t be more blessed and grateful. <3

I have so many things I plan on accomplishing and just thinking about it fills me with excitement. I’ve always said I want to be a jack of all trades and spend a year focusing on each craft. 2024 it was modeling, and although in that field I still have big projects planned for 2025, the main focus of this year is beginning an apprenticeship for body piercings. I’ve been into piercings and tattoos for as long as I can remember. I’m not sure if this is insane of me but I used to pierce all of my stuffed animals when I was little. I knew when I got older I would 100% have a face full of metal. It only made sense for me to do that as a profession. Over the course of the next 5 years I have many different things I plan on beginning, as much as I would love to share the ideas now I think they’re better kept to myself for the time being. Just know that modeling is the tip of the iceberg when it comes to creative outlets for myself and there’s so much more to come 😉

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
This is a tricky question because I have so many favorite spots. The city is absolutely beautiful don’t get me wrong but if I was showing a friend around that’s never been to Atlanta (especially during the summer) the first stop would be the nature spots around the city. Roswell Mill waterfall to be specific. The area is so gorgeous when it’s nice outside. You can have picnics there, chill on the rocks, swim, and just enjoy the waterfall. I did a photoshoot there once it was such a fun experience. Anything out in nature is my first choice over anything, as someone that grew up camping every other weekend.
Another favorite of mine is Little Five Points. Rain or shine you’ll probably find me (usually with Av) wandering through the shops there or grabbing a drink from Java Lords. If you enjoy Mediterranean food then Ali Baba is your best bet for food. The man that owns the restaurant is super sweet, everytime I go I try something new and I have yet to try something I didn’t like. Little Five Points has a little bit of everything from clothing stores, to crystal shops, to good restaurants. You could spend an entire day there. One of my favorite things to do before I go home for the day is stargaze at Centennial Park, you can’t really see many stars because of the light pollution but the vibes there are nice.
In all honesty if someone was coming to visit and I reallyyyyy wanted them to have a good time I would take them to a Mims. It’s a little get together that started between coworkers but gave me some of my best friends ever. The name is an inside joke/ groupchat name but iykyk. The girls always have fun on the days we do mims I love yall down.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
The number 1 person I want to shoutout is one of my best friends ever Av (@av888ry). She has such a way of pulling people’s creativity and greatest potential out of them just through a simple conversation. She has an incredibly beautiful heart & soul and she pours everything she has into everything she does and it shows, it’s beyond admirable. Even outside of a professional setting spending time with Av is always an experience. I’ve never met someone who is just as (if not more) adventurous and unhinged as me. She pushes me to be the very best version of myself just by being herself unapologetically and she inspires me everyday. When im feeling uninspired she’s the person I call. When I have shoot ideas I want to talk about she’s the person I call. When I’m wandering the streets of NYC and just want someone to ramble with she’s also the person I’ll call. Av has been there for me through the good, the bad, and the ugly since the first day I met her and always has the exact words I need to hear no matter what situation I’m dealing with. She can be a friend, a teacher, a creative director, a therapist and a big/little sister all at the same time. I’m so proud of her not even just for the work she’s put into her career but for the woman I’ve watched her become in the period of time I’ve known her. I’m more and more proud of her everyday and I wish nothing but more happiness and more success for her. I love u Av you help me do and be better just by being you. My Sag sun Cancer moon queen.

One more person I would love to shoutout is my grandpa who is the entire reason why I model today. He’s a photographer and growing up whenever he would have shoots I would tag along and be his little assistant. While there was down time he would snap a few pictures of me and that’s the moment I fell in love with modeling. Before I moved to NYC we did one last shoot together and it was such a full circle moment to me I looked through the photos with tears in my eyes, love you Papa.

Instagram: https://Instagram.com/v3nusruledbaby

Image Credits
Personal @itsgroovy_
2 @seanyybo
3 @p3talspill
5 @pixbypure
6 @alexandradorothyphotography