Daria Werbowy’s career began in fits and starts and was slammed by the tragic, Sept. 11 terror attacks on New York City. But she gave it a second chance and her rocketing career has been a bit of a blur ever since, she says.
Werbowy, who is Ukrainian by way of Canada, returned to the motherland for the March issue of Tatler magazine’s Russian edition.
She posed for photographer Maciek Kobielski for a stunning shoot in a suite at The Pierre Hotel on Fifth Avenue in Manhattan.
The statuesque 5’11″ tall beauty has done campaigns for Céline, Balmain and Salvatore Ferragamo, and is a face of Lancôme. But if she had her way she’d rather be sailing and dressed in little or no clothing.
Check out Daria’s photos; click to enlarge.
She is known for her tousled auburn hair, but if it was up to her, “I would love to shave my head, but I’m not allowed,” she tells the magazine.
And, no artificial colors for her. “No, no,” she says at one point. “No bright colors, I want my usual natural makeup brown pencil, black mascara and neutral lipstick.”
She was born in Poland, although of Ukrainian descent and her family emigrated to Canada when she was little, which truly makes her a child of the world. So what better way to express herself than on the sea?
She sailed for 24 days across the Atlantic with her father and sister, and spent two-months last spring and summer, sailing from Guatemala to Belize.
“Sailing is the closest I can get to nature — it’s adrenaline, fear, a constant challenge and learning experience, an adventure into the unknown,” she told The New York Times Magazine last May.
“And of course there is nothing better than wearing the same T-shirt for days and not brushing my hair for weeks,” she added.
She still holds the record for opening and closing the most shows in one season, although she no longer concentrates on runway work. Despite her success–she’s among the top 10 highest-earning models–she remains firmly grounded.
“I’ve had a lot of mixed feelings about what I do … A lot of the time, I feel like I’m part of the problem when it comes to all the superficiality and vanity that impacts the way girls grow up,” she said in a Sept. 2008 interview.
Her beauty is well recognized. She appeared nude in the 2009 edition of the iconic Pirelli Calendar photographed by Peter Beard and returned for the 2011 edition photographed by Karl Lagerfeld.
Check out her brightly colored fashions above.
