Ruslana Korshunova

Fashion model Ruslana Korshunova, 20, fell to her death from her Manhattan apartment building Saturday, June 28, 2008 in an apparent suicide, published reports said. Police said the fall was under investigation. In this gallery, we take a look back at this Russian beauty's time in the fashion spotlight, before her tragic death.

Ruslana Korshunova was born in Alma-Ata, Kazakh SSR,[2] and was of Russian descent. Her father died when she was 6.[3] Her mother, Valentina (née Kutenkova) and her brother, Ruslan, live in Kazakhstan.[4] She spoke fluent Russian, English and German.[1] She was discovered in 2003, when All Asia magazine printed a story on Almaty's local German language club, which Korshunova was then attending. Her photograph, which was featured in the article, caught the attention of Debbie Jones of Models 1; Jones tracked down and signed up the then 15-year-old Korshunova,[5] who was nicknamed the Russian Rapunzel for her long knee length chestnut hair in her early work.[4][3]

from wiki
Korshunova was represented by IMG (New York, Paris, London and Milan),[6] Beatrice (Milan), Traffic Models (Barcelona), Marilyn Models and iCasting Moscow, which was her mother agency. Korshunova modeled for the covers of Elle (France), Vogue (Poland) and Vogue (Russia). She also modeled in print-ads for Blugirl by Blumarine, Clarins, Ghost, Girbaud, Kenzo Accessories, Marithé & François, Max Studio, Moschino, Old England, Pantene Always Smooth, Paul Smith and Vera Wang lingerie.[7]

On June 28, 2008 at around 2:30 p.m., Korshunova died after falling from the ninth-floor balcony of her apartment at 130 Water Street in Manhattan's Financial District. Police stated there were no signs of a struggle in her apartment and concluded that Korshunova's death is an apparent suicide.[8][9]

One of her friends stated that Korshunova had just returned from a modeling gig in Paris, noting that she seemed to be "on top of the world" with no apparent reason why she would commit suicide.[8] Korshunova's former boyfriend, Artem Perchenok, stated that he dropped Korshunova off at her apartment several hours before her death after they watched the Demi Moore film Ghost together.[10] "She was a good person," he told The New York Post. However, she appeared brokenhearted and angry in some of her postings on a social networking site. Korshunova's most telling message came three months ago: "I'm so lost. Will I ever find myself?"[11]

Vladislav Novgorodtsev, Korshunova's life coach, described the young model as heartbroken, lonely, and homesick.[12] According to statements made to the media by Novgorodtsev, Korshunova revealed to him that she was suicidal in the past, having tried to kill herself using various methods at least five times before, beginning when she was 15 years old.[12] In January and February of 2008, she visited the Roza Mira Training Center in Moscow. Novgorodtsev revealed that the model had once confessed to him she was in love with a young man from Moscow, but that nothing could come from the relationship because he was married.[12] Further, Korshunova was also having financial troubles and was asking friends for $400 ten days before jumping to her death.[12] Most of the money Korshunova earned, which was reportedly modest despite being an in-demand model, she sent back home to her mother. There was "no one who was really dear to her, except for her mother," the New York Daily News quoted Novgorodtsev, as saying.[13]




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Its such a shame, I send my condolences.

It is sad when individuals take their lives. Although I would admit I have been driven to that point. I presume my heart goes out more to the model than anyone else. I understand what it is like to miss something or want something. To have the idee fixee of whatever it maybe, that it begins to push you to the brink. To have personally absconded so far that maybe finding yourself seems impossible. To have lost that ebullient persona. So many reasons why people do it for love or lack of it or sick of their penury lifestyle or the opposite.

Caddie