Hana Soukupová

Early life

Soukupová was born on 18 December 1985 in Karlovy Vary, Czechoslovakia (now the Czech Republic). Because of her height, she began playing basketball for a local team at the age of 5.

Career

Soukupová began to work as a model in Prague in 1998. She signed her first major modeling contract at 15 years of age as the face of Carolina Herrera’s Chic perfume.

In September 2004, Soukupová was selected as one of only nine models appeared on the cover of American Vogue in an issue that compared supermodels today to supermodels of the 80s and 90s heyday. Others included Daria Werbowy, Gisele Bündchen, and Karolína Kurková. Vanity Fair touted her as the next Eastern European model that will most likely make it big. Additionally, she has been featured on more then 100 magazine covers including numerous international editions of Vogue and on the covers of Harper's Bazaar, W, Elle, and Allure. Soukupová's work can be seen in over 4,000 pages of editorial fashion stories and advertising campaigns. Soukupová has worked closely with renowned photographers Steven Meisel, Nick Knight, Mikael Jansson, Craig McDean, Mario Sorrenti, Steven Klein, Mario Testino and Patrick Demarchelier.

Soukupová has walked in over 500 runway fashion shows, including the internationally televised Victoria’s Secret shows and opening and closing shows for fashion icons including Alexander McQueen, Zac Posen, Gucci, Galliano, Dior, Calvin Klein, Karl Lagerfeld, Dolce & Gabbana and Valentino. She shot her first international television commercial in 2010 winning a CLIO award for Mattoni, a luxury bottled water company in Europe. Soukupová has acted in several small independent films.

Soukupová has modeled for Gucci, BVLGARI, Escada, Balenciaga, Max Mara, Dior, Carolina Herrera, H&M, Victoria's Secret, and Versace. She has been the face of Gucci Envy, Escada, Dior, Versace, St. John, Carolina Herrera and GAP. Soukupová's other runway credits include Chanel, Dior, Marc Jacobs, Louis Vuitton, Versace, Ralph Lauren, Donna Karen, Alexander McQueen, Hermes, Balenciaga, Valentino, Fendi, Chloé, Gucci, Zac Posen.

Soukupová returned home to host the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival along with Andy Garcia and Vaclav Klaus, the President of the Czech Republic. She is highly regarded in her home country as one of the few models to reach top model status along with Eva Herzigova. Soukupova was selected by the Czech's largest fashion publication to judge the 2014 and 2015 "Next Top Model" competition, the same contest where she was originally discovered 15 years prior. To commemorate Soukupova was featured on the cover of Elle Magazine's January edition of her native country, with an exclusive Louis Vuitton fashion spread shot on location at her home in the US.

For a period of 37 consecutive months Soukupová held the position of #3 in the world according to models.com official ranking of top female models. Soukupová celebrated the birth of her first child on August 25, 2013. Soukupová surfaced a year later appearing on a September 2014 Marie Claire cover. In December 2015 during a Harper's Bazaar photoshoot and interview Soukupova shared that she and her husband were expecting their second child in late 2016 where after she planned to return to work.

Charity

Soukupová is dedicated member of The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. Soukupová has recently become involved with DKMS as a proud supporter for the Global Organization's fight against Blood Cancer. Soukupová and her husband are involved in various organizations and institutions related to supporting contemporary art. In addition has maintained an active role with ecoStyle, an international organization dedicated to environmentally friendly fashion which showcase eco-conscious and sustainable design innovations.

Personal life

Soukupová is married to paper mogul and serial entrepreneur Drew M. Aaron, President and CEO of The Aaron Group of Companies and various other organizations including Lionsgate Capital. The two were married at a small private wedding in 2006. Their homes have been featured in numerous international publications including Elle Decor and Architectural Digest. Soukupová resides in the US and Europe with her husband and their two children.