Being one of the biggest countries in South America, Brazil has produced various culturally significant brands that are respected worldwide. In fact, soccer and carnivals might not even be the first couple of associations that come to mind when thinking about this country. It is the home of some of the sexiest and most attractive models in the world.
With over 200 million inhabitants, this country originates models that are unavoidable in the world’s most renowned fashion and model magazines. Brazil prides itself on having a beautiful and colorful heritage, and its modeling history runs deep.
In this article, we are going to walk you through the list of some of the greatest models Brazil has given us past few decades.
1. Adriana Lima
Born on June 12th, 1981. in Salvador, Adriana Lima is a famous Brazilian model and actress. She is one of the most prominent faces of modeling powerhouse Victoria’s Secret, where she worked from 1999 to 2018.
Adriana was by far one of the strongest names this company had ever chance to work with. She was even named “the most valuable Victoria’s Secret Angel,” placing her in the “hall of fame” of sorts in this fashion’s giants quarters. Besides this, she has been a spokesperson for Maybelline since 2003. Also, Lima is quite famous for her Superbowl and Kia Motors commercials.
When she was only fifteen, she won the Brazil Supermodel contest, and a year after that, she was a runner-up in the Supermodel of the World competition. Later on, she signed a contract with Elite Model Management in New York.
Currently, Lima is one of the highest-paid models in the industry. She is the ambassador of a clothing brand by the name of Desigual from Barcelona and Italian brands such as Calzedonia and Sportmax.
2. Gisele Bundchen
Gisele Bundchen, model, actress, and activist, was born on July 20th, 1980. in small town Horizonte. When she was young, she dreamt of becoming a volleyball superstar, and it was something that she pursued for years. Modeling career was not even something that was crossing her mind at the time. However, life adjusted a bit differently for this young girl.
When she was 14, she moved with her friends to Sao Paolo, where she caught the eye of Elite Modeling representatives. In 1995, she was among top spots in a modeling competition in Sao Paolo, which was one of the first steps that launched her into fashion stardom. Afterward, she arrived in New York, where she modeled wearing dresses of world-renowned fashion designers such as Guccio Gucci, Carolina Herrera, and Ralph Lauren.
In 1999 she appeared in famous fashion magazines such as Vogue. Rolling Stone magazine recognized her as the “most beautiful woman in the universe.” By the time she was 19, she was already one of the highest-paid models in the world, earning roughly 150 million dollars per year.
Over the years, she was a spokesperson for various famous fashion magazines and houses worldwide. She has been happily married since 2009 to American football superstar Tom Brady, with whom she started relationship two years prior to the wedding. They have two kids, son Benjamin and daughter Vivian.
3. Camila Alves
Camila Alves was born on January 28th, 1988, in Belo Horizonte. Her father worked as a farmer, and her mother was a fashion designer.
When Camila was only 15, she moved to her aunt’s in Los Angeles. She barely spoke English but got in love in the city, so she stayed. Alves worked as a waitress and house cleaner while she was learning English at the same time.
By the time she was 19, she had moved to New York, where she had decided to become a model. Soon enough, she became very successful in this line of work, and thanks to it, traveled across the world. Only a couple of years later, she launched a successful line of handbags with her mother.
Camila was invited to various photoshoots for world-famous modeling magazines. She made a name for herself by acting in numerous commercials and music videos. In 2016 she launched her website named “Women of today.” This site covered different topics such as lifestyle, fashion, art, etc.
In 2006 Alves met her future husband, Mathew McConaughey, whom she married in June 2012. They had two kids prior to the marriage, son Levi and daughter Vida, while their third child, son Livingston, was born in 2012.
4. Alessandra Ambrosio
Alessandra Ambrosio was born on April 11th, 1981 in Erechim. She wanted to become a supermodel when she was only eight years of age.
She started modeling lessons when she was 12, and at the age of 14, she was in the top 20 finalists in a modeling competition in Brasil. Alessandra was always insecure about her ears, so she had an operation to pin them back when she was 11 years of age. For the whole year, she had to go on mini surgeries to correct the damage it had done to her.
In 2006 she was a guest at Tyra Banks’ show, where she stated that surgery was an awful experience that completely discouraged her from having any other procedure, and to this day, she did not.
Ambrosio is most famous for her cooperation and modeling with the celebrated Victoria’s Secret. She was their first model in the “Pink” line. Alessandra is one of the “angels” of Victoria’s Secret and the main face of the English house Next.
Besides modeling, she is an ambassador of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. She was pronounced as the second most beautiful woman in the world by men’s magazine 2008.
She was in a relationship with a California businessman Jamie Mazur from 2005 to 2018, after which they split up. They have two children Anja Louise and Noah Phoenix.
Conclusion
These are only a few celebrity fashion models that Brasil has given us during the past couple of decades. They made successful careers not only in their respectable branches but in acting, activism, and influencing.
It did not matter if they came from smaller towns or big cities; these ladies made significant contributions to the modeling industry worldwide.
We hope you enjoyed our list, in which we selected a couple of powerhouse names. Brasilian models are distinguished by their beauty, kind nature, and optimism, a legacy that younger ladies from this country are sure to follow.