(This was previously deleted as I don't want to cause drama...I decided today to restore it.)

A local, highly respected and well-known figure model recruiter and I worked together several times three to six years ago, for both nude and clothed class sessions.  But then the gigs suddenly dried up and she broke off all communication with me: multiple emails and phone calls went unanswered.  At first, I assumed it was COVID, so didn't worry about it.  But then I started making inquiries of her and the various coops.  Eventually I learned I had been accused of falling asleep during the last modeling session by one of the artists, so she was no longer willing to hire me.  This surprised me as no one said anything at the session, she wasn't there herself, and I had posed as a sleeping fisherman...so was SUPPOSED to look asleep.  (My alarm also failed to go off once which may also have added to the bad appearance.)

Complicating matters, when she first recruited me, she asked why I was interested in posing nude.  I answered honestly: at the time I was extremely shy and modest, and this was a good way to break out of my shell.  That, and the desire to participate in the creation of art, was sufficient motivation.  She later commented that that first reason was additional justification for no longer hiring me, even though it no longer was in play.

I have no way to prove that I didn't fall asleep, and as a 41-year-old male model that doesn't have a ripped physique, there's not a lot of demand for me locally relative supply.  Any thoughts on how to proceed?  I figure I'll just do my best to network with others, and hope she's not in contact with them.

Move on and forget this recruiter.

But just one worthless opinion.

I agree that you should move on, and try to network with other art directors and those who hire figure models for art classes and groups.  Generally once ties are cut off by those who are in authority in any given venue, it's next to impossible to reconnect until that person or persons have left their position.

I would also like to share a couple of personal experiences along those lines. I have to strongly disagree with her using the fact that one of your main reasons for trying modelling in the first place was to help you get out of your shell and grow socially, and turn that motivation against you. This, in fact, was exactly why and how I got my start.  In my early 30's I was socially awkward and uncomfortable in a lot of situations, so I attended a number of sessions with a counselor to work on that. One of the things she strongly recommended to me was to sign up to model naked for art classes, or privately for artists or photographers.  She even told me where to look for such opportunities and gave me a couple of names of people to contact. While it took me a bit to actually do that, I quickly learned she was correct and that it was a wonderful experience.  Learning to pose was not too difficult and 35+ years later I am still modelling.

I found out that this was a suggestion sometimes made to shy people by therapists and had even been published back in the 1980's, so it is very legitimate regardless whether one comes up with that first modelling experience on their own, or does so at the suggestion of someone else who knows it is helpful.

I did learn from the art director who I worked closely with for a number of years, that there was sometimes an issue with male models who are in fact exhibitionists looking for a "safe" venue to be naked in front of groups of people.  Of course, once those are discovered, they are quickly removed from the schedule and not allowed to model for that group again. I wonder if the person you are referring to had some unspoken fear of that, even though you never did anything inappropriate she could have had bad experiences with someone else or knew of other situations not directly involving herself or the location you were modelling at.

I'm wondering whether the fact that being devoted to art was not your #1 motivation for being there when you first started could have caused her to look for any possible additional reason to choose other models instead.