Adriana Lima

Adriana Lima is a Brazilian model who became one of the best-known faces in international fashion. She is widely associated with her long tenure as a Victoria's Secret Angel and with high-profile advertising campaigns, and she ranked for many years among the highest-paid models in the world.

Early life

Lima was born on 12 June 1981 in Salvador, in the Brazilian state of Bahia. She was discovered through modeling competitions as a teenager, placing highly in national and international contests that brought her to the attention of major agencies. This early success led to her signing with a leading modeling agency and beginning work abroad.

Career

Lima's career advanced quickly after she began modeling internationally in the late 1990s. She became a Victoria's Secret Angel in 2000, a role that would define much of her public image. Over nearly two decades she became one of the brand's most recognizable models, appearing in numerous of its fashion shows and campaigns and frequently opening or closing the events. She also wore several of the brand's elaborate, jewel-encrusted showpiece garments.

Beyond lingerie modeling, Lima worked across the broader fashion industry, walking runways for major designers and appearing on magazine covers worldwide. She served as a long-term face for cosmetics campaigns, including a lengthy association with Maybelline, and fronted advertising for a range of other brands. Her commercial appeal made her a fixture on industry lists of top-earning models.

Recent work

Lima stepped back from her Victoria's Secret role in the late 2010s after one of the longest runs of any model with the brand. She has continued to work in fashion and advertising on a more selective basis, appearing at major events and on red carpets, including international film festivals. She has also taken part in brand ambassadorships and occasional acting and hosting projects.

Outside of modeling, Lima has been involved in charitable work and has spoken publicly about her personal life and family, including raising her children. She has periodically returned to high-profile fashion events, and her appearances at international film festivals and brand functions continue to draw media attention. Over the years she has also been the subject of features examining the changing standards and business of the modeling industry, in which she has been a leading figure.

She remains one of the most internationally recognized Brazilian models, and her long association with major fashion and beauty brands has kept her a notable presence in the industry well beyond her years as a runway regular. Within Brazil she is regarded as one of the country's most successful exports in fashion, and internationally her name remains closely tied to the era in which lingerie runway shows commanded global attention.