Abbey Lee's Gucci x 2

gucci via wwd

A fortnight after she appeared as a Victoria’s Secret Angel in the US lingerie company’s blockbuster runway show, Abbey Lee Kershaw has notched up her latest advertising coup, her second Gucci campaign for 2008, as the face of Gucci’s new fragrance, Flora.
UPDATE 20/12: ABBEY LEE ALSO BAGS GUCCI RESORT 09.
UPDATE 01/01/09: ABBEY LEE'S GUCCI x 4

Aimed at a younger customer, and to be launched in April, Gucci’s latest perfume was named after Gucci’s iconic Flora print.

First used on a scarf made for Princess Grace in 1966, the print was hauled from the company’s archives in 2005 by new creative director Frida Giannini, to create a series of best-selling canvas bags.

On Friday, industry sources told WWD the fragrance could generate US$220million in sales in its first year, in spite of the difficult economic climate.

The tvc has been shot by Chris Cunningham, with Inez van Lamsweerde and Vinoodh Matadin shooting the print campaign.

Such has been the extraordinary success of the 21 year old Melbourne native this year – not to mention that of her even younger Chic/Next stablemate, Myf Shepherd – that it is easy to overlook the fact that Kershaw was a complete unknown in the northern hemisphere one year ago.

Before Kershaw had even set foot on an international runway, she had already shot the D&G spring/summer 2008 ad campaign with high profile fashion snapper Mario Testino, with whom she would also shoot the D&G pre Fall 2008 campaign.

In February in New York, Kershaw hit the ground running in her first international runway show season, eventually walking in an impressive 44 Fall/Winter 2008/2009 shows – a number that would have been higher had she not been snaffled by Gucci for a Milan runway exclusive. Which was swiftly followed by the Gucci FW0809 ad campaign (Inez & Vinoodh). Natch.

Here’s the official FW0809 campaign vid:



For Spring/Summer 2009, Kershaw walked in 48 shows. This included another Gucci runway exclusive, at the immediate conclusion of which Kershaw appeared in five high profile Italian shows in 24 hours: Alessandro dell 'Acqua, Max Mara, Pucci, Fendi and Versace.

Kershaw also became infamous for two SS09 runway spills, even though neither incident occurred within range of the photographer’s gallery: in falling off her vertiginous Nicholas Kirkwood shoes at Rodarte in New York and then fainting in Alexander McQueen’s corset in Paris three weeks later.

This just-published Mario Sorrenti shoot of Kershaw in Vogue Italia reveals why the corset may have been a bit too, well, small for Kershaw.

Kershaw has also appeared in the FW0809 campaigns for both CK Jeans and Express Jeans, as well as a Lord & Taylor advertisement - alongside Lauren Hutton.

The Gucci Flora campaign is one of two new ad campaigns nabbed by Kershaw, after the See by Chloe SS09 campaign - which Kershaw shot last weekend according to her Sydney agency.

Since September, Kershaw has also scored four international fashion magazine covers: one of multiple September covers of V magazine, one of multiple covers of the FW0809 edition of the French Revue des Modes, the October cover of Dazed & Confused and the December cover of Numéro Korea.

What a year.



both covers: models.com