A Model Perspective : Natalia Vodianova

I have always loved Natalia Vodianova. From the moment she came on the scene she's been one of my favorite models. Its hard not to appreciate a face as hauntingly beautiful as hers and over the years I've followed her work be it the ads for Calvin Klein or her editorials in everything from Vogue Paris to W. She has always stood out amidst the crowd and has come across as intelligent and articulate, whether she's speaking about her charity work or the remarkable transition from fruit stand sales girl to one of the worlds most prominent faces. It is always nice to know that someone is more than just a pretty face, particularly in an industry wherein pretty faces abound.


My all time favorite shots of Natalia, pregnant and absolutely glowing

This week Natalia spoke out as part of a CFDA panel on super thin models. She talked about her personal struggles with food and body image as a model as well as the pressures to remain thin, particularly after giving birth to her son.

""At 19 and 117 pounds I gave birth to my son Lucas" Two weeks later Natalia was back on the runway" My weight fell to 106 pounds. I was nervous, oversensitive and I had thinning hair. I wasn't even aware I was unhealthy. I didn't know there was something wrong with me. I thought I was just doing my job,"

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Vodianova explained how growing up in Russia, she viewed food as a necessity.
"But then I arrived in Paris as a model, and my relationship with food changed. Conversations with other models revolved around diets and going to the gym. It had never occurred to me to think of food in this way. I began to pay attention and compare myself to other models.
"It happened to me without me realizing it."
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She regained her health with the help of supportive friends, but her agency told her that her weight gain of 9lbs was being criticised by designers. "I was lucky enough to be very much in demand, so I could ignore the criticisms. But if I had not been in such a fortunate position, that could have affected me badly, just when I was getting better," she said.

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"The next season, I got healthy again, but when I returned to work, my weight was questioned," she said. "Some fashion houses called my agency complaining that I was two centimeters over [in measurements]. I was extremely upset since I felt very healthy and good about myself. I defended myself, saying it was crazy to consider measurements like 33-27-34 to be normal and not to expect some change.

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"Most of these girls come from poor backgrounds, they are young, they are very lonely and they are trying to help their families. They will do anything to keep living this dream."

She said most models were "normal girls" who developed issues around food because of industry pressures.



9 pounds. You gain 9 pounds on a frame that is already underweight and people are calling your agency to complain. It boggles the mind. Name one other industry wherein this type of behavior is considered acceptable. I am so glad Natalia spoke out on this. Its refreshing given that in just about every other interview about this CFDA conference someone is pushing the blame on someone else. Be it designers blaming agencies, agencies blaming parents and parents scratching their heads back in Moscow, Malawi or Michigan thinking "Um. We haven't even gotten to see our daughters in months." Its about time someone spoke up especially given that girls are dying just to fit into idiotic sample sizes. Its high time something was done about it.