BA1b Lotta Volkova
Model and fashion stylist Lotta Volkova was born in Russia in 1984. She was originally the in-house stylist for Balenciaga and now works for Vetements. She is a stylist and associate of Demna Gvasalia, co-founder of Vetements and creative director of Balenciaga. She spent her younger years studying photography and fine art at Central Saint Martin’s College in London. She decided to focus her skills on styling, which she excelled in and is her main form of work in the fashion industry now.
During the time when Russia was still a part of the Soviet Union, Volkova was born in Novosibirsk. She was brought up by a navy captain father who brought her gifts from all over the world and was dressed in German and Japanese clothing, exposing her to other cultures at a young age. Aged 17, she moved to London, which was a drastic change to her home city.
Volkova started dressing both her friends and her by designing and making her own clothing. She then launched Lotta Skeletrix, a label with post-punk influences, in 2004, she attracted a small number of stockists, including The Pineal Eye and Dover Street Market London, where she first met Rei Kawakubo. Following a brief stint as a designer, she moved to Paris in 2007 and began concentrating on styling. Volkova’s styling career expanded fast after German fashion photographer Ellen von Unwerth hired her to style her first shoot.
Since 2020, Volkova has collaborated with Miuccia Prada on shows and advertisements as the brand’s styling advisor. She also serves as a styling consultant for Blumarine, where she collaborates with the company’s creative director, Nicola Brognano, on a dramatic redesign of the historic Italian company.
In 2022, Volkova and Jean Paul Gaultier released a capsule collection that reimagined the legendary Jean Paul Gaultier archival collections in the context of a modern wardrobe for a new generation of fashion enthusiasts. Both Volkova’s and Gaultier’s typical work contrast each other, so this made for a different and exciting collaboration. Additionally, she created a capsule line for Adidas in 2020 that was an exciting fusion of the sportswear company’s history and her own unwavering vision.
Bibliography
- Lotta Volkova is part of the BOF 500 (2022) The Business of Fashion. Available at: https://www.businessoffashion.com/community/people/lotta-volkova (Accessed: February 29, 2023).
- Art partner (no date). Available at: https://www.artpartner.com/artists/style/lotta-volkova/overview/ (Accessed: February 29, 2023).
- Jean Paul Gaultier X lotta Volkova (no date) Art Partner. Available at: https://www.artpartner.com/artists/style/lotta-volkova/archive/story/jean-paul-gaultier-x-lotta-volkova-2022/ (Accessed: February 29, 2023).
