Evgeny Volodina. A new turn in the career of Evgenia Volodina Evgenia Glushenko Eugenia Glushenko
Evgenia Volodina is actually the owner of an amazing appearance, some connoisseurs consider her incredibly beautiful, while others do not see anything special in her. However, her successes speak for themselves, because once accidentally getting into this industry, she has not left her pedestal for many years. Her photos do not stop appearing on the covers of fashion glossies, and famous brands do not present their shows without the participation of Evgenia. Every fashionista should know this success story.
early years
The future top model was born on September 17, 1984 in the Russian city of Kazan. She was lucky to be born into a prosperous family. As a child, parents always paid Zhenya a lot of attention and helped her not to need anything. In addition to Evgenia, the family also brought up sisters and a brother, who also grew up as polite and sociable personalities. As a child, Evgenia Volodina did not really want to connect her life with the modeling business, but her older sister simply dreamed about it. But these were the 1990s, when this business was in doubt for many, and the profession seemed very unsafe.
Even despite the fact that Zhenya's sister was incredibly beautiful and had all the model data, her dream was not destined to come true.
As a teenager, Evgenia Volodina attended a modeling studio. Initially, she enrolled in it with her best friend and was not serious about classes. The girl quit training many times, after which she returned again. In general, she did not treat classes as something serious, but came there to have fun and not be bored at home. At that time, no one could imagine that such a “hobby” would develop into a profession. Zhenya was thinking about entering a university, and even applied to a local institution. Her fate would have been completely different if she had not decided to participate in the Miss Advertising contest.
The beginning of a modeling career
By a lucky chance, the famous photographer Alexei Vasiliev was present at the competition. He, of course, liked Zhenya, and therefore he took a couple of photos, which he immediately, after the end of the competition, sent to the Parisian agency Viva. Some time later, in 2000, Alex contacted the future model and surprised her with the news that she was invited to move to Paris. Evgenia Volodina took this news very seriously. She did not immediately collect bags and go to another part of the continent, the girl weighed all the pros and cons for a long time and carefully. However, her main dream played a big role: she had long wanted to visit her favorite city - Paris.
The first year in Paris was very difficult and stressful for her.
New city, new people, complex language and, to top it all off, lack of work flow, modest earnings and a lot of competition. Eugenia was depressed and upset, because the city of her dreams opened up from a completely different side. Usually, at such moments, she was supported by close people: her mother, sisters, brother, but for so many thousands of kilometers away, words of support could only be heard on the phone, and this was not enough.
Modeling career
Options:
- Growth- 176 cm;
- The weight- 55 kg;
- Options– 84-60-88 cm.
Attention to the Zhenya person increased only after she met the incredible photographer Steven Meisel. For the first joint photography, he invited the girl to New York, but it was not possible to take a photo, the shooting was postponed all the time due to minor problems. Despite this, other photographers still began to invite Zhenya for cooperation. In 2002, the shooting with Stephen finally took place, he took some impressive photos for Vogue (Italy). It was this photography that is considered decisive in Evgenia's modeling career, she gave impetus to the difficult world of high fashion.
After such a stunning success, there were not only ups, but also downs. For example, in 2003, representatives of the Christian Dior brand liked the girl, who invited her to become the face of their famous perfume "J'adore". Since 1999, supermodel Carmen Kass has been the face of this perfume, but the designers had an idea to slightly change the format of the perfume and call a new model for this. At the casting, Evgenia Volodina took several photos, thanks to which she was approved.
Wife even had to dye her hair from dark to light
But soon the brand changed plans again. They decided not to resort to such drastic changes in the advertising campaign of the fragrance and again signed a contract with Carmen. Of course, this was unexpected news for Zhenya, but after a while she was invited to become the face of other equally prestigious perfumes, including In Love Again (Yves Saint Laurent) and V (Valentino).
Evgenia Volodina (model)
Evgenia Evgenievna Volodina. She was born on September 23, 1984 in Kazan. Russian supermodel.
Has a brother and two sisters.
From an early age, all three Volodya sisters wanted to become models. The tone was set by the elder sister Julia. But it so happened that Zhenya became a star.
As a teenager, she went to the studio at the Lik Fashion Theater, where she received her first professional lessons.
At the age of 14 in 1998, she already became a model for a Kazan agency.
In 2000, after graduating from school, she took part in the Miss Advertising contest, where she was noticed by a scout from the Grace Models agency and sent photos of Zhenya to the Paris agency Viva. Then she was invited to go through a casting. It is worth noting that at that moment she entered the Kazan Energy University, passed several exams. But she could not refuse the offer to work in Paris - it was the city of her dreams.
She herself recalled: “I worked as a model from the age of fourteen, while still living in Kazan, and I knew that many were going abroad, but I didn’t believe in my strength, but in vain. I was the only one from my agency who was chosen to work in Paris. At the age of sixteen she graduated from high school and, not even knowing the language, left. Of course, it was hard, but I quickly adapted. Helped by Gia Jikidze. The hardest thing was when, after three months in Paris, I was sent to New York because Steven Meisel was interested in me.
In Paris, Evgenia Volodina lived in a rented apartment with an aspiring model from England. She constantly attended various auditions. After some time, Evgenia was noticed by the famous photographer Steven Meisel. He invited her to a photo shoot in New York, but Zhenya was ill for two weeks and the photo shoot never took place. Only in 2002 did Stephen still shoot Evgenia Volodina on the cover of the Italian version of Vogue magazine. The photographer gave the model a nickname "Zhenya Zhenial"("brilliant Zhenya").
From that moment, Zhenya's dizzying career began.
In the early 2000s, Evgenia Volodina was part of the "group of three V" - Volodina,. Three Russian-speaking models that blew up the fashion world.
In January 2002, she made her debut at Haute Couture Fashion Week in Paris where she walked for Balmain, Christian Dior, Givenchy, Jean-Paul Gaultier and Yves Saint Laurent.
The blue-eyed native of Kazan opened Marc Jacobs shows and closed Valentino, showed Balmain and Jean Paul Gaultier couture, as well as Victoria's Secret panties, served as the face of Gucci (she was shot by Mario Testino himself).
Photographers she has worked with include Irving Penn, Richard Avedon, Mario Testino, Patrick Demarchelier, Mert & Marcus, Steven Klein, Karl Lagerfeld, Mario Sorrenti, Craig McDean, Peter Lindbergh, Paolo Roversi, Terry Richardson, Sölve Sundsbø, Alasdair McLellan.
In 2001-2007, Evgenia was one of the most sought-after models on the catwalk. She has taken part in over 500 shows of all famous designers and fashion houses, many of which she was trusted to open or close, including Gucci, Roberto Cavalli, Costume National, Max Mara, Carolina Herrera, Alberta Ferretti, Valentino, Jean-Paul Gaultier , Louis Vuitton, Elie Saab and Dsquared2.
Evgenia Volodina took part in the famous Victoria's Secret Fashion Show four times in 2002, 2003, 2005 and 2007.
In addition to the already mentioned Gucci campaign, Evgenia has also been the face of such prestigious brands as Dolce & Gabbana, Versace, Valentino, Yves Saint Laurent (beauty), Bill Blass, Oscar de la Renta, Fendi, Jean-Paul Gaultier, Escada, Chanel (eyerwear ), Bvlgari, Salvatore Ferragamo, Zac Posen, Thierry Mugler (beauty), Céline, Ann Taylor and others. She was the face of 3 perfumes at once: “In Love Again” by Yves Saint Laurent, “Incanto” by Salvatore Ferragamo and “V » from Valentino.
Evgenia Volodina was on the covers of various fashion publications - such as Vogue (Italy, Russia, Germany, Spain, Japan and Mexico), Harper's Bazaar (Russia, Korea, Spain and Ukraine), Elle (France, Spain and Argentina), Numéro , Numéro Russia, i-D, Marie Claire (Russia), L "Officiel (Netherlands) and French Revue de Modes. She also has photographed for American, British, French and Brazilian Vogue.
In 2005, she took part in a candid shoot for the Pirelli calendar.
In March 2017, after a three-year break, Evgenia returned to the catwalk, taking part in the Balmain fall-winter 2017 show as part of Paris Fashion Week.
Lives in two cities - Paris and Rome.
The growth of Evgenia Volodina: 179 centimeters.
The growth of Evgenia Volodina: Chest - 84 cm, Waist - 61 cm, Hips - 88 cm.
Personal life of Evgenia Volodina:
He has a son to whom he devotes all his free time. Evgenia said: “In my youth, I was responsible only for myself - it’s easier, even considering the crazy work schedule with four flights between New York and Paris a week. And now I’m also responsible for the child. To keep fit, I go to gym - three days with a trainer, two cardio - I run. But in general, you don’t have to go - there’s enough workload at home: why not drive football with your son?
He is friends with another Russian top model and is the godmother of her daughter.
in 1984, in the city of Kazan, the future fashion star was born Evgenia Volodina. Zhenya grew up in a large friendly family. In addition to her parents and grandmothers, she was surrounded by her sisters and brother. The Volodin family has always been considered prosperous: the children grew up in abundance and did not need anything. All the girls in the family were very beautiful. In the mid-1990s, her older sister Yulia, who had all the data for this, dreamed of becoming a model. But then the modeling business seemed very doubtful. Too many dark personalities revolved around the girls who went out on the catwalk, and this profession in Russia looked completely unsafe.
To my first modeling studio Evgenia Volodina Came here with a friend. The girls went to a teenage studio that existed at the Lik Fashion Theater. Zhenya then quit classes, then started again. In 2000, she again resumed her hobby. Model classes for teenagers included several subjects: style, make-up, psychology, acting, gait and choreography. Zhenya treated these activities more as a pleasant entertainment. No one seriously thought that the girl was waiting for the future of a professional model.
Evgenia Volodina finished school. It was necessary to decide on the choice of profession. Like many Russian graduates, she planned to enter a university. Kazan State Power Engineering University was chosen as the place of study. Nevertheless, Zhenya decided to take part in the Miss Advertising contest.
By coincidence, a Moscow photographer came to the competition Alexey Vasiliev- the same one that I found two years earlier in Nizhny Novgorod Natalia Vodianova. He took some pictures at the competition Evgenia Volodina and sent them to Paris, to the agency Viva. A few months later, Alexey called back to Kazan and said that they wanted to see Zhenya in Paris.
By that time Evgenia Volodina already passed most of the entrance exams. In fact, the decision to leave her was not at all as obvious as it might seem at first glance. Whether she would like it in Paris, whether she could stay - all this was unknown.
But at home, there were still tangible real prospects: studying at the university, higher education. Nevertheless, Zhenya chose Paris. It was an opportunity not to be missed. In addition, in case of failure, one could try to enter the institute the next year. And in some ways it was for the better, this pause - during the year you could calmly think about what you really wanted from life and what you didn’t.
But the most important thing is Zhenya Volodina I really wanted to go to Paris. This was the city of her dreams. It was the place where she had wanted to be since childhood. Moreover, it was not about a simple tourist trip for a few days. Evgenia Volodina had the opportunity to live in this city - to walk along the banks of the Seine, turn onto familiar boulevards, sit in her favorite cafes. And all this not as a casual visitor, but as a person who feels Paris is his own.
Like many aspiring fashion models, the first year in Paris was not at all easy. Zhenya lived in the same conditions in which all novice models found themselves. Income less than $100 per week. A modest apartment rented by an agency for two with another model girl (Yevgenia Volodina's neighbor was from England). Endless auditions in different parts of the city. But the hardest part was that Zhenya was alone - no mom, no dad, no sisters and brother, to whom she was so accustomed and who supported her so much. The most difficult are the first months, when you still do not speak a fluent spoken language and there is no opportunity to communicate freely. And it seems that no one needs you in this alien metropolis. And that it will always be like this - hard days, lonely evenings and views, on which you were not chosen again.
Hope for the best appeared only after Zhenya was noticed by the famous photographer Stephen Meisel. By the time they met, Meisel had been considered the star of fashion and fashion photography for at least twenty years. He was born in 1954 in New York. Fashion magazines have been his passion since childhood. There is a legend that at the age of 12, Meisel specially came to the studio of a photographer Melvina Sokolsky(Melvin Sokolsky) to see Twiggy(Twiggy) - the famous model of that time.
For filming Stephen Meisel invited Evgeny Volodin to New York. But from the very beginning, everything went somehow wrong: Zhenya had a cold for two weeks, the shooting was either postponed or canceled. In the end, that shoot didn't work out. However, despite the unfortunate failure, this was still a breakthrough: she was noticed, very serious photographers began to invite her to work. This gave, if not confidence, then at least hope for a professional future.
And yet it is precisely Stephen Meisel gave rise to the real career of Volodina. Meisel photographed Eugenia for the cover of Italian Vogue in 2002. He really liked her appearance and her ability to work. With his light hand, Evgenia Volodina was given the nickname Zhenya Zhenial - Brilliant Zhenya. This shoot for Vogue was the first big success for Zhenya and gave impetus to her subsequent professional growth.
2002 was generally for Evgenia Volodina very successful. She began to be invited to participate in fashion weeks. To demonstrate the haute couture collections of the spring-summer 2002 season, Zhenya was invited and Balmain, and "Christian Dior" and "Givenshy" and Jean-Paul Gaultier- a very honorable list for any model. But the most important thing that season was, perhaps, the show of the Japanese Junia Watanabe(Junya Watanabe).
In the same year Evgenia Volodina got the first really big offer. Together with Natalia Vodianova she became the face of an advertising campaign Gucci. This legendary fashion house was founded guccio gucci(Guccio Gucci) back in 1921 and is today one of the oldest European brands. After the death of the founder, the company was inherited by his sons - there were six children in the family.
Tom Ford was very supportive of the appearance Eugene Volodina as the face of the brand. Zhenya's appearance was the best fit for the image Gucci. She was very elegant and at the same time somewhat reminiscent of a headstrong teenager who ran away from home to live her own, independent life. It was a new image of a femme fatale - tender and at the same time dangerous because of her dazzling beauty. Such a character was required by Gucci.
Photos have been ordered Mario Testino- another photographer whose name is legendary for fashion. Super Mario, and that is how it is customary to call this master, who worked with Versace and Madonna, who shot Kate Moss and Princess Diana, was also a man of a very complicated fashionable biography. He was born in the mid-1950s in Peru, in Lima, and until a certain moment he did not think about a career as a glossy photographer. Testino studied economics, law and international relations at prestigious universities: he had every chance of becoming a successful lawyer.
But he chose a different path. In 1976 Mario Testino came to London and started learning photography. He made a living by preparing portfolios for girls who dream of becoming models. Now it's hard to believe that his picture, along with the services of a hairdresser and a VG, cost only 25 pounds. Today fees Mario Testino calculated in different amounts.
In the photographs of Mario, Zhenya looked like a chic and stubborn girl - with an inner sense of style and a strong character. The advertising campaign of the Gucci fashion house of that year was made in black and white, and this made me remember not only the world of fashion, but also art photography. Such a gesture, in turn, implied that Gucci is not only a fashionable, but also an artistic phenomenon: it was about several other accents in the positioning of the brand. The refined and complex image of Evgenia Volodina was very useful in this situation. A year after this shooting, it was officially announced that Gucci and Tom Ford were breaking off their relationship and the great American was leaving the famous fashion house. In March 2004, his latest collection was presented. Not only in the Gucci house, but also in world fashion, an entire era has ended, of which Zhenya Volodina was a part.
In that stunning career that Evgenia made, becoming one of the most successful models of the decade, there were, however, not only ups, but also failures. A very unfortunate incident happened in 2003. Evgenia Volodina attracted the attention of the company Christian Dior. Zhenya was chosen as the new face of the fragrance J'adore. This perfume was successfully launched in 1999 and two years later, in 2001, was voted fragrance of the year.
The heroine of the first advertising campaign "J" adore, that began immediately after the release of the fragrance was an Estonian model Carmen Kass(Carmen Kass). She has lived and worked in Paris since the late 1990s, starred in commercials for almost all famous brands and was one of the most popular models of the 2000s. In 2000, Vogue magazine and VH1 recognized her as Model of the Year. Therefore, it is not surprising that at one time it was she who was offered to become the face of the new Dior perfume project. In 2003, the idea arose to slightly change the image of the fragrance and invite another model for filming.
For the new version of the J "adore" advertisement, they chose Evgeny Volodin. She passed the casting, several photographs were taken. For the sake of this shoot, she had to change her hair color: she became a blonde. But at the very last moment, plans changed. It was decided to do without major updates: the company again signed a contract with Kar-men Kass. Zhenya's collaboration with Christian Dior perfumery did not work out. A few years later, a new model was finally found for J "adore. She also became a model from Estonia - Tiu Kuik. All three girls were shot by the same photographer - the famous Jean-Baptiste Mondino.
However, this unfortunate failure did not prevent Evgenia Volodina to become after a while the heroine of perfumery of other well-known firms. Among the fragrances she has represented are In Love Again (Yves Saint Laurent), Incanto (Salvatore Ferragamo) and V (Valentino). Zhenya had an impeccable track record. It had all the most famous names of world fashion.
Over the next few years, Evgenia Volodina not only starred in significant advertising campaigns - and she became the face of Celine, Dolce & Gabbana, Fendi - but also actively participated in fashion shows. In the coming years, she walked the podium more than 1,500 times. There were so many photographic series with her participation in fashion magazines that there was an effect of constant presence. Zhenya has become a model, without which it was impossible to imagine the last few years. And in a sense, she was a sign of this time.
But the most amazing thing was something else. Despite her stellar fees, which now amounted to tens and hundreds of thousands of dollars, she somehow remained that naive little girl who bought herself elegant things in Kazan for a trip to Paris. She still touchingly cares for her brother and sisters; she spent her first large fee on buying a new apartment for her parents. Despite her success, she remained a member of that large family that follows her progress at home.
For my relatives, I am not a chic model at all. I'm just the way I am, she says in an interview.
Evgenia Volodina was never able to fall in love with New York. She prefers Paris, to the amazing magic of which she is still not completely accustomed to. The profession forces me to live between Paris, Milan and London. But when asked if she considers herself a representative of the international fashion world, Zhenya invariably answers: “I am a Russian model.” And in this ease of answering controversial questions, one can feel the quality that she considers one of the most important - respect for herself and for people.
In a professional environment, there is an opinion that beauty is more of an internal state, and not just a feature of facial features. For Evgenia Volodina, such an undoubted quality is the inner nobility, which makes her a unique character in modern fashion. With her success, she seems to confirm the thesis that it is not enough to look beautiful - it is necessary to be worthy.
Book: Russian Models
On September 17, 1984, in the city of Kazan, the future fashion star Evgenia Volodina was born. Zhenya grew up in a large friendly family. In addition to her parents and grandmothers, she was surrounded by her sisters and brother. The Volodin family has always been considered prosperous: the children grew up in abundance and did not need anything. All the girls in the family were very beautiful. In the mid-1990s, her older sister Yulia dreamed of becoming a model, who had all the data for this. But then the modeling business seemed very doubtful. Too many dark personalities revolved around the girls who went to the podium, and this profession in Russia looked completely unsafe.
Evgenia Volodina came to her first modeling studio with a friend. The girls went to a teenage studio that existed at the Lik Fashion Theater. Zhenya then quit classes, then started again. In 2000, she again resumed her hobby. Modeling classes for teenagers included several subjects: style, make-up, psychology, acting, walking and choreography. Zhenya treated these activities more as a pleasant entertainment. No one seriously thought that the girl was waiting for the future of a professional model.
Evgenia Volodina graduated from high school. It was necessary to decide on the choice of profession. Like many Russian graduates, she planned to enter a university. Kazan State Power Engineering University was chosen as the place of study. Nevertheless, Zhenya decided to take part in the Miss Advertising contest.
By coincidence, Moscow photographer Alexei Vasiliev came to the competition - the same one who had found Natalia Vodianova in Nizhny Novgorod two years earlier. At the competition, he took several pictures of Evgenia Volodina and sent them to Paris, to the Viva agency. A few months later, Alexey called back to Kazan and said that they wanted to see Zhenya in Paris.
By that time, Evgenia Volodina had already passed most of the entrance exams. In fact, the decision to leave was not at all as obvious as it might seem at first glance. Whether she would like it in Paris, whether she could stay - all this was unknown.
But at home, there were still tangible real prospects: studying at the university, higher education. Nevertheless, Zhenya chose Paris. It was an opportunity not to be missed. In addition, in case of failure, one could try to enter the institute the next year. And in some ways it was for the better, this pause - during the year you could calmly think about what you really wanted from life and what you didn’t.
But most importantly, Zhenya Volodina really wanted to get to Paris. It was the city of her dreams. It was the place where she wanted to be since childhood. Moreover, it was not about a simple tourist trip for a few days. Evgenia Volodina had the opportunity to live in this city - walk along the banks of the Seine, turn onto familiar boulevards, sit in your favorite cafes. And all this not as a casual visitor, but as a person who feels Paris is his own.
Like many aspiring fashion models, the first year in Paris was not at all easy. Zhenya lived in the same conditions in which all novice models found themselves. Income less than $100 per week. A modest apartment rented by an agency for two with another model girl (Yevgenia Volodina's neighbor was from England). Endless auditions in different parts of the city. But the hardest part was that Zhenya was alone - no mom, no dad, no sisters and brother, to whom she was so accustomed and who supported her so much. The most difficult are the first months, when you still do not speak a fluent spoken language and there is no opportunity to communicate freely. And it seems that no one needs you in this alien metropolis. And that it will always be like this - hard days, lonely evenings and screenings where you were not chosen again.
Best of the day
Hope for the best appeared only after Zhenya was noticed by the famous photographer Steven Meisel. By the time they met, Meisel had been a fashion and fashion photography star for at least twenty years. He was born in 1954 in New York. Fashion magazines have been his passion since childhood. There is a legend that at the age of 12 Meisel specially came to the studio of photographer Melvin Sokolsky (Melvin Sokolsky) to see Twiggy (Twiggy) - the famous model of that time.
For filming, Steven Meisel invited Evgenia Volodina to New York. But from the very beginning, everything went somehow wrong: Zhenya had a cold for two weeks, the shooting was either postponed or canceled. In the end, that shoot didn't work out. However, despite the unfortunate failure, this was still a breakthrough: she was noticed, very serious photographers began to invite her to work. This gave, if not confidence, then at least hope for a professional future.
And yet it was Steven Meisel who gave rise to Volodina's real career. Meisel photographed Evgenia for the cover of Italian Vogue in 2002. He really liked her appearance and her ability to work. With his light hand, Evgenia Volodina was given the nickname Zhenya Zhenial - Genius Zhenya. This shoot for Vogue was the first big success for Zhenya and gave impetus to her subsequent professional growth.
2002 was generally very successful for Evgenia Volodina. She began to be invited to participate in fashion weeks. Balmain, Christian Dior, Givenshy, and Jean-Paul Gaultier invited Zhenya to demonstrate haute couture collections for the spring-summer 2002 season - a very honorable list for any model. But the most important of that season was, perhaps, the show of the Japanese Junya Watanabe.
In the same year, Evgenia Volodina received the first truly major offer. Together with Natalia Vodianova, she became the face of the Gucci advertising campaign. This legendary fashion house was founded by Guccio Gucci back in 1921 and is today one of the oldest European brands. After the death of the founder, the company was inherited by his sons - there were six children in the family.
Tom Ford was very supportive of the appearance of Evgenia Volodina as the face of the brand. Zhenya's appearance was the best fit for the Gucci look. She was very elegant and at the same time somewhat reminiscent of a headstrong teenager who ran away from home to live her own, independent life. It was a new image of a femme fatale - tender and at the same time dangerous because of her dazzling beauty. This character was what Gucci needed.
The photographs were commissioned by Mario Testino, another photographer whose name is legendary in fashion. Super Mario, as this master, who worked with Versace and Madonna, filmed Kate Moss and Princess Diana, was also a man of a very difficult fashion biography. He was born in the mid-1950s in Peru, in Lima, and until a certain moment he did not think about a career as a glossy photographer. Testino studied economics, law and international relations at prestigious universities: he had every chance of becoming a successful lawyer.
But he chose a different path. In 1976, Mario Testino came to London and began to learn photography. He made a living by preparing portfolios for girls who dreamed of becoming models. Now it's hard to believe that his picture, along with the services of a hairdresser and makeup artist, cost only 25 pounds. Today, Mario Testino's fees are calculated in completely different amounts.
In the photographs of Mario, Zhenya looked like a chic and stubborn girl - with an inner sense of style and a strong character. The advertising campaign of the Gucci fashion house of that year was made in black and white, and this made one think not only of the fashion world, but also of fine art photography. Such a gesture, in turn, implied that Gucci is not only a fashionable, but also an artistic phenomenon: it was about several other accents in the positioning of the brand. The refined and complex image of Evgenia Volodina was very useful in this situation. A year after this shooting, it was officially announced that Gucci and Tom Ford were breaking off their relationship and the great American was leaving the famous fashion house. In March 2004, his latest collection was presented. Not only in the Gucci house, but also in world fashion, an entire era has ended, of which Zhenya Volodina was a part.
In that stunning career that Evgenia made, becoming one of the most successful models of the decade, there were, however, not only ups, but also failures. A very unfortunate incident happened in 2003. Evgenia Volodina attracted the attention of Christian Dior. Zhenya was chosen as the new face of the J "adore fragrance." This perfume was successfully launched in 1999 and two years later, in 2001, was recognized as the fragrance of the year.
The heroine of the first J "adore advertising campaign, which began immediately after the release of the fragrance, was the Estonian model Carmen Kass. She has lived and worked in Paris since the late 1990s, starred in commercials for almost all famous brands and was one of the most popular models of the 2000s. In 2000, Vogue magazine and the VH1 channel recognized her as the Model of the Year. Therefore, it is not surprising that at one time it was she who was offered to become the face of the new Dior perfume project. In 2003, the idea arose to slightly change the image of the fragrance and invite another model to shoot.
Evgenia Volodina was chosen for the new version of the J "adore advertisement. She passed the casting, several photographs were taken. For the sake of this shooting, she had to change her hair color: she became blonde. But at the very last moment, the plans changed. It was decided to dispense with major updates: the company again signed a contract with Carmen Kass. Zhenya's cooperation with Christian Dior perfumery did not work out. A few years later, a new model was nevertheless found for J "adore. She also became a model from Estonia - Tiu Kuik (Tiiu Kuik). All three girls were photographed by the same photographer - the famous Jean-Baptiste Mondino.
However, this unfortunate failure did not prevent Evgenia Volodina from becoming, after a while, the heroine of perfumes from other well-known companies. Among the fragrances she has represented are In Love Again (Yves Saint Laurent), Incanto (Salvatore Ferragamo) and V (Valentino). Zhenya had an impeccable track record. It had all the most famous names of world fashion.
Over the next few years, Evgenia Volodina not only starred in significant advertising campaigns - and she became the face of Celine, Dolce & Gabbana, Fendi - but also actively participated in fashion shows. In the coming years, she walked the podium more than 1,500 times. There were so many photographic series with her participation in fashion magazines that there was an effect of constant presence. Zhenya has become a model, without which it was impossible to imagine the last few years. And in a sense, she was a sign of that time.
But the most amazing thing was something else. Despite her stellar fees, which now amounted to tens and hundreds of thousands of dollars, she somehow remained that naive little girl who bought herself elegant things in Kazan for a trip to Paris. She still touchingly cares for her brother and sisters; she spent her first large fee on buying a new apartment for her parents. Despite her success, she remained a member of that large family that follows her success at home.
For my relatives, I'm not a chic model at all. I’m just the way I am,” she says in an interview.
Evgenia Volodina was never able to fall in love with New York. She prefers Paris, to the amazing magic of which she is still not completely used to. The profession forces me to live between Paris, Milan and London. But when asked if she considers herself a representative of the international fashion world, Zhenya invariably answers: “I am a Russian model.” And in this ease of answering controversial questions, one can feel the quality that she considers one of the most important - respect for herself and for people.
In a professional environment, there is an opinion that beauty is more of an internal state, and not just a feature of facial features. For Evgenia Volodina, such an undoubted quality is the inner nobility, which makes her a unique character in modern fashion. With her success, she seems to confirm the thesis that it is not enough to look beautiful - you must be worthy.
This is the very quality that attracts in Zhenya those who see her as the heroine of their advertising campaigns. Self-esteem is a state that cannot be painted or, like a chic dress, put on for one evening and then hidden in the closet. Evgenia Volodina once again reminded us and the whole world that one of our exports is still the mysterious Russian soul.