Viktoria Modesta

Viktoria Modesta
Background information
Birth name Viktorija Moskaļova
Born (1988-02-25) 25 February 1988
Daugavpils, Latvia
Origin United Kingdom
Genres Electronic, pop, dance
Occupation(s) Singer-songwriter, performance artist, model, actress
Website www.viktoriamodesta.com

Viktoria Modesta (born on 25 February 1988 as Viktorija Moskaļova in Daugavpils, Latvia) is a Latvian-born English singer-songwriter performance artist and model.

Early life

Modesta was born in Daugavpils in 1988 where she learned singing aged six at a local music school.[1] Moskaļova moved with her family from Latvia to the United Kingdom when she was 12 years old.[2] Due to a doctor's negligence at her birth, Moskalova spent most of her childhood in and out of hospitals.[1] This accident led to a lasting problem with her left leg. In 2007, she had a voluntary below-the-knee leg amputation to improve her mobility and safeguard her future health. Her physicality has become known for challenging the modern perception of altered beauty.[3]

Career

Modeling

Moskalova began modeling at the age of fifteen. She has appeared on subculture magazine covers such as Bizarre[4][5] and Skin Two.[6]

On 10 January 2015 Viktoria signed with IMG Models worldwide.

Music

Moskalova attended a performance art school from the age of 6 in Daugavpils, Latvia studying piano, vocal performance and sheet music. In 2009, she launched her first musical writing collaborative project with musician/producer Nik Hodges. Their first written track "Jane Bond" was featured in Music Week Playlist.[7] In May 2010, Moskalova was selected as one of the six best unsigned artists in the UK by Evo Music Rooms presented by Edith Bowman. The show was broadcast on Channel 4.[8]

On 19 March 2010 Moskalova released her first EP titled EP1.[9]

On 28 May 2012 Moskalova put out a digital, independent release of her debut single "Only You".[10] which was featured by iD,[11] Wonderland[12] and Notion[13] magazines.

On 12 December 2014, she launched a collaboration with Channel 4 for the campaign Born Risky,[14] branding her as the world's first "Bionic Pop Artist" supported by the track "Prototype" released on Spotify for streaming. The video for the campaign was directed by Saam Farahmand. The video has received global attention, with over 10 million views on YouTube and over 16 million on Channel 4's Facebook page. The story was publicised worldwide throughout news networks publications such as i-D Magazine, Upworthy, Forbes and Elle Magazine USA. The video for Prototype received a Silver Lion Award at Cannes Film Festival.

MIT Media Lab

Moskalova has joined the MIT Media Lab as a Director's Fellow.[15]

2012 Summer Paralympics closing ceremony

Moskalova performed as the 'Snow Queen' to a live performance of "42" by Coldplay at the 2012 Summer Paralympics closing ceremony in London directed by Kim Gavin in a 'Winter' section together with 6 warrior skaters from Dancing On Ice. Her performance wearing a Swarovski crystal-covered prosthetic leg was written about in The Times,[16] Grazia[17] and Look[18] magazines.

Acting

In 2017, Moskalova appeared in the second episode of the third season of the SyFy Network's "Killjoys" as a "Hackmod" named Niko, featuring several of her iconic prosthetic legs. The soundtrack for the episode featured multiple occurrences of Moskalova's "Prototype" single.[19][20]

References

  1. 1 2 Viktoria Modesta Moskalova: The Modern Perception Of Altered Beauty, 5election, Retrieved 26 November 2016
  2. ↑ "Modesta kāju zaudējusi Latvijas ārstu nolaidības dēļ" (in Latvian). Delfi.lv. December 16, 2014. Retrieved January 16, 2015.
  3. ↑ Unconventional Beauty Article, Yahoo
  4. ↑ 'Christmas Issue' 2009
  5. ↑ June issue 2008
  6. ↑ SKINTWO issue 58
  7. ↑ Music Week playlist 20 July 2009
  8. ↑ Channel 4 listing
  9. ↑
  10. ↑ Only You on iTunes
  11. ↑ iD magazine article Archived 25 January 2013 at Archive.is
  12. ↑ The Riseand Rise of Viktoria Modesta, Wonderland magazine, 12 April 2012, Retrieved 26 November 2016
  13. ↑ magazine article
  14. ↑
  15. ↑ Announcement
  16. ↑ The Times article
  17. ↑ Grazia Magazine Article
  18. ↑ Look Magazine article Archived 3 April 2013 at the Wayback Machine.
  19. ↑ Viktoria Modesta blog post regarding her appearance on Killjoys 12 May 2017, Retrieved 09 Jul 2017
  20. ↑ Tv-Eh Article 6 Jul 2017, Retrieved 9 Jul 2017

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