With her 40th birthday approaching in January, Irina Shayk, the Russian-born, New York-based supermodel, is no longer afraid of change. "Sometimes we don't like change because it scares us," she admits exclusively to HELLO!. "But I feel like we all do need it."
The model, who has walked for the likes of Givenchy, Bottega Veneta, Chanel and Burberry, has enjoyed a meteoric career, but this year marks a "dream come true" for the mother of one as she appears in the Pirelli calendar for the first time, draped in coral chiffon for an otherworldly shoot.
The striking images, shot by the Norwegian photographer Sølve Sundsbø, were created to represent wind, with the other calendar stars including the musician FKA Twigs, actress Gwendoline Christie and sportswoman Venus Williams, representing fire, earth and ether.
"Sometimes we don't like change because it scares us, but I feel like we all do need it."
© Max Cisotti/Dave Benett/Getty ImOn receiving the call about the Pirelli calendar, Irina recalls: "I was on a vacation in Turkey with my family, eating kebab for three weeks straight, and I got a call [offering me the job]. I literally screamed. It was always my dream, and it was always my bucket list. It's a huge honour for me."
Irina likens the element of wind to the unexpected twists and turns her life has taken since she first found fame in front of the camera in 2007 as the face of lingerie brand Intimissimi and on the cover of Sports Illustrated: "You never know which direction your life is going to blow today or tomorrow, next week or next year."
After her 2019 split from the actor Bradley Cooper, who is the father of her daughter, eight-year-old Lea De Seine Shayk Cooper, Irina has kept her personal life out of the limelight. However, she tells HELLO!: "Life is movement. It brings a lot of changes, and I do love changes.”
She says Pirelli's calendar has also undergone a shift. "It's evolved into celebrating diversity, women's empowerment and celebrating inside beauty."
Of her calendar co-stars, including the actress Isabella Rossellini and the model Eva Herzigová, Irina enthuses: "To be in the company of all those women, it's a dream come true. The shot felt like a magic space, and when I saw the final results, I was blown away."
With her milestone birthday just weeks away, Irina is revelling in the now, sharing: "I'm so excited for holidays, I'm in New York – and it's very windy, but I'm ready for sunny weather."
