Dasha Zhukova

Early life and education

Darya Alexandrovna Zhukova was born in Moscow on 8 June 1981. Her father is Alexander Zhukov, an oil trader. Her mother is Elena Zhukova, a Russian-Jewish In 1991, she moved with her mother to the United States, settling in the Houston area as her mother had relocated due to work. They later moved to Los Angeles, California. By the time Elena retired, she was a professor of molecular biology at UCLA, as well as an authority on diabetes.

Zhukova attended a Jewish day school in California. It was a Hebrew college, Dasha's first school in the US, and she attended it for three years. She attended Pacific Hills School, graduating in 1999. She graduated with honors from the University of California, Santa Barbara with degrees in Slavic studies and literature. After becoming involved with Roman Abramovich, she returned to Moscow and later moved to London where she enrolled at the College of Naturopathic Medicine but did not complete the program. In 2023, Dasha graduated from NYU with a Masters of Arts.

Career

In 2006, Zhukova co-founded the fashion label Kova & T.{{cite web

In 2008, Zhukova founded the Garage Center for Contemporary Culture (part-funded by Abramovich) in Moscow, a nonprofit organization supporting the advancement of contemporary art and culture in Russia and abroad. In 2012, the center launched the first comprehensive art education program and public archive of Russian art in the country. In 2014, the institution changed its name to Garage Museum of Contemporary Art and, the following year, moved to its first permanent home in Gorky Park. The building, designed by Rem Koolhaas, is a preservation project that transformed a 1968 Soviet Modernist canteen into a radical space for exhibitions, publishing, research, and education.

In February 2009, Zhukova was appointed editor-in-chief of the fashion magazine Pop. Many in the industry saw her as an unlikely replacement for launch editor Katie Grand. In an interview at the time she was unable to name a single artist she admired, saying she was bad with names.

In addition, Zhukova is the Editorial Director of GARAGE magazine, a biannual print publication that focuses on the collaboration between contemporary art and fashion. Since its inception, GARAGE magazine has worked with some of the world's most celebrated creators and initiated global artistic dialogues. Among the magazine's contributors are artists such as Jeff Koons, Damien Hirst, Nick Knight, Marc Jacobs, Richard Prince, John Baldessari, Inez & Vinoodh, and Patrick Demarchelier. The magazine took its name and spirit from Garage Museum of Contemporary Art. She also is a founding member of the Culture Shed in New York.

Racist chair controversy

In 2014, a photograph of Zhukova sitting on a chair designed as a mannequin of a black woman was featured on Buro 24/7, an online fashion publication. The photograph was widely criticized as racist. Buro 24/7 cropped the chair from the photo and Zhukova apologized, describing the chair as artwork and as "commentary on gender and racial politics". Zhukova added, "I utterly abhor racism and would like to apologise to those offended by my participation in this shoot".

Personal life

In 2008, Zhukova married Roman Abramovich, a Russian businessman who is the main owner of the private investment company Millhouse LLC and was at the time the owner of Chelsea Football Club. The couple have two children, a son and a daughter, who were both born in the United States. In August 2017, the couple announced that they would separate.

On 11 October 2019, Zhukova married Stavros Niarchos III, son of Philip Niarchos, in a civil ceremony in Paris, France. The couple have three children together - two sons (born March 2021 and November 2024) and a daughter (born 2023).

Zhukova holds dual Russian and American citizenship. The businessman Rupert Murdoch became her stepfather after he and Zhukova's mother married in June 2024.

Zhukova donated to Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign. She also donated to the Democratic National Committee.

References

References

1. Sassall, Yeong. (22 April 2015). "Women in the arts: Dasha Zhukova". Buro247.
2. Ioffe, Julia. (27 September 2010). "Garage Mechanics".
3. Helmore, Edward. (26 May 2011). "Dasha, Dasha, Dasha". [[The Wall Street Journal]].
4. [https://www.ft.com/content/a71190e8-2934-11e2-9591-00144feabdc0 Dasha's next move] {{webarchive. link. (21 May 2017 // [[Financial Times]])
5. Sawyer, Miranda. (4 October 2009). "Dasha Zhukova: From It Girl to Art Girl". [[The Guardian]].
6. Silva, Horacio. (25 February 2010). "Red Hottie". [[The New York Times]].
7. Blasberg, Derek. (13 August 2012). "Dasha Zhukova: Queen of the Art Scene". [[Harpers Bazaar]].
8. (3 March 2023). "Dasha Zhukova's Artful Rise". The New York Times.
9. Victoria Stapley-Brown. (10 April 2018). "Max Hollein is the next director of New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art". The Art Newspaper.
10. Lia Morreale. (23 July 2018). "DASHA ZHUKOVA: FROM INEXPERIENCED HEIRESS TO ART MAGNATE". Elle Decor.
11. Chloe Malle. (14 March 2019). "Is the Shed the Defining Arts Institution of a New New York City?". Town & Country.
12. Miranda Sawyer. [https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2009/oct/04/dasha-zhukova-interview-roman-abramovich Dasha Zhukova: From It Girl to Art Girl] {{webarchive. link. (8 September 2013 // [[The Guardian]])
13. (6 September 2011). "Dasha Zhukova Finally Opens the Door to Her Garage". The New York Observer.
14. (16 July 2015). "You wait ages for a Rem Koolhaas-designed contemporary art space, then two come along at once". The Guardian.
15. "About".
16. (19 March 2012). "Garage Magazine's Very Modern Nursery-Rhyme Cover". The Daily Beast.
17. (13 August 2012). "Dasha Zhukova: Queen of the Art Scene". Harpers Bazaar.
18. "Russian Fashion Editor Sits on a Black Person Posing as a Chair; Apologizes". The Hollywood Reporter.
19. (20 January 2014). "Garage Magazine Editor-In-Chief Dasha Zhukova Sits on A 'Black Woman' Chair in Shocking Editorial". HuffPost.
20. (21 January 2014). "Editor apologises after Dasha Zhukova 'black woman mannequin' chair sparks racism row". The Independent.
21. (14 April 2013). "Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich celebrates birth of his seventh child, his second with model Daria Zhukova". Miami Newsday.
22. (7 August 2017). "Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich splits from wife". BBC News.
23. (18 October 2019). "Top Collectors Wed: Stavros Niarchos and Dasha Zhukova Tie the Knot". ARTnews.
24. GCT. (14 March 2021). "Dasha Zhukova gives birth to baby boy, welcomes first child with Stavros Niarchos". Greek City Times.
25. Johnston, Harriet. (26 July 2024). "Roman Abramovich's ex-wife Dasha Zhukova is expecting her third child with Greek billionaire Stavros Niarchos".
26. Bickerstaff, Isaac. (9 December 2024). "Happy holidays! Dasha Zhukova and Stavros Niarchos III welcome their third child".
27. (7 September 2017). "Who Is Ivanka Trump's Close Friend Dasha Zhukova?".
28. "[https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2016/07/democratic-national-convention-2016-russiasn-214123/ The Russians at the DNC]". ''[[Politico]]''. 29 July 2016.