If you don’t follow fashion then you must have first heard of Stefania Bassey in 2015 when she was chosen as one of the 36 finalists for the Most Beautiful Girl in Nigeria, two years after Mel Devidal whom we also profiled on the site.
Stefania and Mel share many other similarities asides having contested for the M.B.G.N. crown and working on several projects like the Grey Velvet 2014 editorial and the most recent Sisiano look book. They are both multi-racial, in-demand models with a sibling in fashion. Stefania’s high profile fashion sibling is none other than Paolo Sisiano.
Paolo is a multi-platform artist. He is an accomplished dancer who has worked on several high profile Nigerian theatre musicals including Saro, Saro 2: The Musical and Wakaa: the musical. He has also worked as a coach on the now defunct television show Maltina Dance-All. He is also a multi-media artist and a celebrated designer with the design label Sisiano, known for its use of draping and volume.
As a designer Paolo is very much about keeping it in the family. Stefania has served as his primary muse since the start of his label, serving as the face of his first four collections; a running themed concept that follows the life of a fictional muse Ms Green in all the promotional material released. In 2016 she reprises her role as face for the brand in his Spring 16 lookbook ‘Birds At War’. His unique aesthetic has won him long time fans like actress and presenter Ade Laoye and singer Waje.
Asides being Paolo’s long time muse, Stefania has also enjoyed success as a runway model, walking at the Lagos Fashion and Design Week in 2012, 2013 and 2o14. She has also walked for Music Meets Runway in 2013 and fronted campaigns for high street retailer Grey Velvet. We love how well Stefania and Paolo work together and hope that this is a pairing that will continue for at least another decade.