Dasha Zhukova

Darya "Dasha" Alexandrovna Zhukova (Russian: Дарья "Даша" Александровна Жукова; born 8 June 1981) is a Russian-American businesswoman, art collector, magazine editor, and philanthropist. She is the founder of the Garage Museum of Contemporary Art and Garage Magazine.

In this Eastern Slavic name, the patronymic is Alexandrovna and the family name is Zhukova.
Dasha Zhukova
Даша Жукова
Born
Darya Alexandrovna Zhukova

(1981-06-08) 8 June 1981
Moscow, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union
Nationality
  • Russian
  • American
EducationUniversity of California, Santa Barbara (B.A., 2004)
Spouse(s)
​
​
(m. 2008; div. 2017)​

Stavros Niarchos II
​
​
(m. 2019)​
Children2
Parent(s)Alexander Zhukov
Yelena Zhukova
RelativesPhilip Niarchos (father-in-law)

Early life and education

Zhukova was born as Darya Alexandrovna Zhukova in Moscow on 8 June 1981.[1] Her father is Alexander Zhukov, an oil trader.[1][2] Her mother is Yelena Zhukova, a Russian-Jewish[3] scientist of molecular biology.[1][2] Her parents separated when she was 3.[4] In 1991, she moved with her mother to the United States, settling in the Houston area as her mother had relocated due to work.[1][2][4] They later moved to Los Angeles, California.[2][4] By the time Yelena retired, she was a professor of molecular biology at UCLA, as well as an authority on diabetes.[5]

Zhukova attended a Jewish day-school in California.[3] It was a Hebrew college, Dasha's first school in the US, and she attended it for three years.[5] 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 London's College of Naturopathic Medicine but did not complete the program.[6][7]

Career

In 2006, Zhukova co-founded the fashion label Kova & T. She sits on the board of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA), an organization to which she has contributed.[4][6]

In 2008, Zhukova founded the Garage Center for Contemporary Culture (part-funded by Abramovich[8]) 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 restaurant into a radical space for exhibitions, publishing, research, and education.[9][10]

Zhukova is the creative director of New Holland Island in St. Petersburg, overseeing the commercial and architectural development of the eight-acre island in the heart of the city. The island, created by Peter the Great, has lain vacant for almost 300 years. Known now as "art island", the development will include cultural spaces, as well as commercial and residential property.

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.[4] In an interview at the time she was unable to name a single artist she admired, saying she was bad with names.[3] She resigned from the position after three issues in November 2010.[11][12]

In addition, Zhukova is the editor-in-chief 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.[6][13][14] 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 apologised, 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".[15][16][17]

Political donations

Zhukova donated to Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign. She also donated to the Democratic National Committee.[18]

Personal life

In 2008, Zhukova married Roman Abramovich, a Russian oligarch and the main owner of the private investment company Millhouse LLC. The couple had two children, a son and daughter, who were both born in the US.[19] In August 2017, the couple announced that they would separate.[20] On 11 October 2019, Zhukova married Stavros Niarchos II, son of Philip Niarchos, in a civil ceremony in Paris, France.[21] In December 2020, it was reported that Zhukova is pregnant with her third child, and her first with Niarchos.[22]

Zhukova has dual Russian and American citizenship.[23]

References
  1. Sassall, Yeong (22 April 2015). "Women in the arts: Dasha Zhukova". Buro247. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 8 January 2016.
  2. Ioffe, Julia (27 September 2010). "Garage Mechanics". The New Yorker. United States. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 8 January 2016.
  3. Sawyer, Miranda (4 October 2009). "Dasha Zhukova: From It Girl to Art Girl". The Guardian. United Kingdom. Archived from the original on 8 September 2013. Retrieved 22 March 2011.
  4. Helmore, Edward (26 May 2011). "Dasha, Dasha, Dasha". The Wall Street Journal. United States. Archived from the original on 10 January 2016. Retrieved 8 January 2016.
  5. Dasha’s next move Archived 21 May 2017 at the Wayback Machine // Financial Times
  6. Silva, Horacio (25 February 2010). "Red Hottie". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 12 February 2017.
  7. Blasberg, Derek (13 August 2012). "Dasha Zhukova: Queen of the Art Scene". Harpers Bazaar. Archived from the original on 29 November 2014. Retrieved 17 November 2014.
  8. Miranda Sawyer. Dasha Zhukova: From It Girl to Art Girl Archived 8 September 2013 at the Wayback Machine // The Guardian
  9. Miller, M.H. (6 September 2011). "Dasha Zhukova Finally Opens the Door to Her Garage". The New York Observer. Archived from the original on 29 November 2014. Retrieved 18 November 2014.
  10. Moore, Rowan (16 July 2015). "You wait ages for a Rem Koolhaas-designed contemporary art space, then two come along at once". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 14 June 2015. Retrieved 14 June 2015.
  11. Odell, Amy (11 October 2010) "Dasha Zhukova Is Leaving Pop – The Cut Archived 15 November 2010 at the Wayback Machine". New York Magazine. Retrieved 17 July 2013.
  12. "Dasha Zhukova quits Pop magazine". New York Post (11 November 2010). Archived from the original on 29 November 2014. Retrieved 18 November 2014.
  13. Cutruzzula, Kara (19 March 2012). "Garage Magazine's Very Modern Nursery-Rhyme Cover". The Daily Beast. Archived from the original on 29 November 2014. Retrieved 18 November 2014.
  14. Blasberg, Derek (13 August 2012). "Dasha Zhukova: Queen of the Art Scene". Harpers Bazaar. Archived from the original on 29 November 2014. Retrieved 17 November 2014.
  15. Chan, Stephanie. "Russian Fashion Editor Sits on a Black Person Posing as a Chair; Apologizes". The Hollywood Reporter (21 January 2014). Archived from the original on 16 December 2014. Retrieved 15 November 2014.
  16. Wilson, Julee (20 January 2014). "Garage Magazine Editor-In-Chief Dasha Zhukova Sits on A 'Black Woman' Chair in Shocking Editorial". HuffPost. Archived from the original on 13 November 2014. Retrieved 15 November 2014.
  17. Saul, Heather (21 January 2014). "Editor apologises after Dasha Zhukova 'black woman mannequin' chair sparks racism row". The Independent. Archived from the original on 29 November 2014. Retrieved 17 November 2014.
  18. "The Russians at the DNC". Politico. 29 July 2016.
  19. "Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich celebrates birth of his seventh child, his second with model Daria Zhukova". Miami Newsday. 14 April 2013. Archived from the original on 16 September 2013.
  20. "Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich splits from wife". BBC News. BBC. Archived from the original on 7 August 2017. Retrieved 7 August 2017.
  21. Durón, Maximilíano (18 October 2019). "Top Collectors Wed: Stavros Niarchos and Dasha Zhukova Tie the Knot". ARTnews. Retrieved 21 October 2019.
  22. Sampson, Annabel (16 December 2020). "Dasha Zhukova is reportedly expecting first child with Stavros Niarchos". Tatler. Retrieved 16 December 2020.
  23. "Who Is Ivanka Trump's Close Friend Dasha Zhukova?". Town & Country. 7 September 2017.
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