MILAN — Valentina Sampaio is the newest face of Armani Beauty.
The 26-year-old Brazilian transgender model and activist will feature in the brand’s 2022 beauty campaigns, lensed by Swedish photographer Mikael Jansson.
“Armani Beauty is my vision of what beauty should be today: meaningful and cross-cutting. Just like my clothes, my beauty products aim to empower all women, regardless of their culture, country of origin or background,” Giorgio Armani said in a statement, additionally praising Sampaio’s “will, commitment and determination.”
“Valentina is not afraid to speak and her words are important and touching,” the designer added.
“As a trans woman, this collaboration is a great milestone, and a personal dream come true for me,” said Sampaio, underscoring how “makeup has played such a meaningful role in my personal evolution” and acknowledging Armani Beauty “for embracing diversity, enabling creative expression and empowering individual beauty.”
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In particular, Sampaio will appear in the advertising campaign of Lip Power, the brand’s latest lipstick launched in Europe and the U.S. in September and rolling out in China early next year. Developed by the brand’s beauty licensee L’Oréal with Giorgio Armani international makeup artist Linda Cantello, the Lip Power collection includes 25 highly pigmented shades presented in a slender tube and drop-shaped bullet that facilitate quick application and a precise contouring of the lips.
Sampaio’s modeling career kicked off in 2016 when she walked in São Paulo Fashion Week and has grown in prominence over the last few years. Her career has included many historic moments, such as becoming Victoria’s Secret’s first transgender model — representing a wind of change at the innerwear retailer — and becoming the first transgender model to appear on a worldwide Vogue cover on the March 2017 issue of French Vogue. Sampaio subsequently featured on several glossy titles, such as international editions of Vogue and Elle as well as Vanity Fair Italy and Marie Claire Brazil.
In November 2020, Armani guest edited a special issue of Harper’s Bazaar Spain, on which Sampaio appeared on the cover alongside the designer himself. She was also featured in the V and VMAN 2021 calendar, created in collaboration with Emporio Armani to celebrate the brand’s 40th anniversary.
In September, Sampaio made her Met Gala debut wearing a crimson-hued Iris van Herpen dress, and raised awareness for the LGBTQ community with an NFT and short film. As reported, the model teamed with the Lions Management and blockchain company Lukso to create the digital assets to benefit an array of LGBTQ organizations, such as the Ali Forney Center, GLAAD and Pride Live.
In her new role at Armani Beauty, Sampaio joins celebrities including Cate Blanchett, who has been the face of the Sì fragrance franchise since its launch in 2013 and rose to the role of the brand’s first global beauty ambassador in 2018, representing makeup and skin care as well. Other ambassadors at the brand include actors Ryan Reynolds; Jackson Yee; Nicholas Hoult; Zhong Chuxi; Adria Arjona; Alice Pagani; Greta Ferro, as well as models Barbara Palvin and Madisin Rian.