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Natalia Vodianova
Natalia Vodianova
Natalia Vodianova is a Russian supermodel.
Her rags to riches life story has made her one of the
most talked about models in recent memory. Born in
Gorky (now Nizhni Novgorod) February 1982, Russia's third
largest city, she lived with her mother and two half-sisters
in unpleasant conditions. Her mother's abusive boyfriends
and a tight financial situation dogged her throughout
childhood.
Helping her mother with her fruit stall business at the
tender age of 11, Vodianova moved into her own apartment
with a friend at 15 years old. They started their own
fruit stall to help out the struggling family and were
actually quite successful, all things considered. They
were able to help out Vodianova's sisters, one of whom
is an invalid.
Just before moving, Vodianova enrolled in a modeling
academy, where she learned ladylike behavior and etiquette.
Fortunately, she also went to casting opportunities, and
one day, she caught the eye of a scouting agent from Paris.
He told her that a great future was in store for her;
all she had to do was learn English in three months.
Convinced that her life could change for the better,
Vodianova did just that. At 17, she moved to Paris to
try her hand at modeling. Delighted to work, she was a
dream client for the Viva agency and was an inspired woman.
Though her salary was small at her first, it was still
much more than what she was earning in her native Russia.
When she was 19 years old, she made much headway in modeling
but still had not made it big. For some time, she was
distracted however, after falling in love and marrying
British real-estate heir Justin Portman. She gave birth
to son Lucas before the lavish wedding in St. Petersburg,
and for an instant, her career looked bleak. Fortunately,
these distractions did not sway her: she roamed the runways
for several fall collections and astounded so many that
she headlined the Yves Saint Laurent show that same year.
Soon, Vodianova's phone was ringing off the hook. Gucci
made her the new face for their perfume line after she
had more than 40 runway shows under her belt, and then
Calvin Klein called to hire her for their big Spring show.
She was officially the hot new face in town and even made
a brief appearance in Roman Coppola's film CQ with Billy
Zane.
Now, with campaigns for Louis Vuitton, Marc Jacobs and
Miss Sixty to her name, Vodianova is a true supermodel.
She has done it all, from Vogue covers to big-name fashion
shows. The media loves her not only for her "real"
look, but because her story is so inspiring. Living in
New York with her husband and son, Vodianova, at only
21 years old, is already poised to take over the whole
modeling world with her charm and sex appeal.
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