Marc Jacobs’s New Muse Proves You Don’t Have to Be a Workaholic to Get Ahead in Fashion
“I get shivers when I see how much love and energy a designer and his or her team put in to organize a fashion show,” said Russian beauty Anya Lyagoshina during a trip to the Vogue offices. “There is nothing more sincere than a person who really loves what they do.” Lyagoshina would know. A model since her teens, she’s worked with the greats—Yohji Yamamoto, Nicolas Ghesquière, Raf Simons, and more—but it wasn’t until after she stepped away from the spotlight for an extended break in her homeland that she realized her full potential. “I was just taking care of myself; I felt so energetic,” she says. “I came here [to New York] and I went to castings not expecting to do Fashion Week, but I was surprised in such a good way.”
That was six months ago, and in the time since, Lyagoshina has kept busy. Between editorials by Emma Summerton and Liz Collins, David Sims campaigns, and a steady flow of other work, she’s experiencing a career renaissance at just 22. After being scouted at 16, she was thrust into a rigorous schedule of fashion shows and international shoots that left her winded and burned out. So, she hit pause: “When you get into that zone, you have to switch or you’ll get disconnected [from life],” she says. “I had to take some time to get my balance back.”
Lyagoshina returned home to Russia to regroup, throwing herself into her passions: reading, writing, and her newest obsession, yoga. (“I can’t go a day without it now,” she says.) It was a bold move, given that thousands of models are competing for the same few campaign and runway spots each season; few feel they can take a break and maintain their momentum. The irony of leaving fashion only to subsequently become an in-demand commodity isn’t lost on Lyagoshina. “I’m not going to get stressed out about whether or not things go well,” she says. “Before, I was taking things too seriously. Now, I’m enjoying every moment that I can—especially the collaboration [aspect], which is a great part of it.”
One designer close to Lyagoshina’s heart is Marc Jacobs, who, along with casting director Anita Bitton, selected her, for her first show back after the hiatus, for last season’s Fall 2018 extravaganza. Handpicked to receive one of the dramatic Guido Palau haircuts and star in the corresponding Steven Meisel–helmed campaign, she’s officially part of his cabal of muses. The transformation she underwent—from a lengthy bob with bangs to a buzz cut worthy of Lisbeth Salander—was drastic, but the impact was more than physical. “When I first saw the difference, the tears just started,” Lyagoshina remembers. “It wasn’t because I was attached to my hair or anything; it’s just an emotional experience to see yourself change.”
The Meisel shoot was especially meaningful to Lyagoshina. “I just loved being on set with such an inspirational group,” she says, describing her day with the dream team of Jacobs, Palau, Meisel, and Pat McGrath as a “pinch me” moment. “The direction was quite interesting—for the first time in my life I had to hold a huge Doberman, and for the second time I wore my favorite dress from the collection.” She was also impressed by Meisel’s speedy process: “He is a true master and takes no longer than 10 minutes to make a picture.”
This season, walking the Jacobs runway again as an exclusive, Lyagoshina has come full circle. But instead of stressing about her Europe bookings ahead of the show, her mind was on a recent trip to visit her grandmothers in the forests of Altai Krai, where she meditated, did yoga asanas in the woods, and gained a sense of what’s truly important. “I learned so much about myself by listening to their stories and getting some cooking lessons,” she says. “I can say this summer was very inspiring for me, so now I’m ready for new adventures.”
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