Anna Hiltrop reports on the phone that she is in her hotel room in Vienna. A grand hotel, of course, the interior is baroque and plush. “Like in a Sissi film.” Corona seems passé in the fashion industry, the schedule of the 28-year-old model is pretty full again, one trip follows the other. She ended up in the Austrian capital because she received an award there the night before – the biggest of her career so far.
WORLD: Ms. Hiltrop, how do you feel as a newly chosen model of the year?
Anna Hiltrop: Good question! The award ceremony was originally planned for November last year. Then it was postponed to March because of Corona, then to September. When I found out that I was going to get the prize, I was extremely happy. The excitement has died down a bit due to the postponements, but of course I’m still really happy.
WORLD: You were honored as “Model Icon of the Year” in Vienna at the “Vienna Awards” – the most important fashion awards ceremony in Austria. Your predecessors as award winners include top models such as Bar Refaeli and Karolina Kurkowá. The first big title as a model for you?
Hiltrop: Yes, but not my first prize ever. At the end of June, I won the Green Award at the Greentech Festival at Berlin’s Tegel Airport together with the team from the “RhineCleanUp” initiative – I am their ambassador. It’s about clearing the Rhine of rubbish, from the source to the mouth. Even now in Vienna, I have not only been recognized for my career, but also for my commitment to the environment and the sustainable use of resources. For example, I brought out the “Waschies”, reusable make-up remover pads. I like trying new things. In cooperation with a textile manufacturer I designed sustainably produced shirts. Fashion has to be sustainable or it won’t be at all.
WORLD: The award ceremony in Vienna was rather traditional. The setting was the Liechtenstein Palace in the city center. Baroque stucco ceilings, neo-rococo interior. Do you feel comfortable in such a feudal ambience?
Hiltrop: What should I say? That’s typical of Vienna. Events in state halls are the rule and not the exception in my line of business.
WORLD: Please describe the atmosphere at the ceremony.
Hiltrop: Oh, very glamorous. 200 guests. Super elegant evening gowns. The eulogy for me was very, very lovingly worded. I spontaneously left my acceptance speech at the table and spoke freely. I was told afterwards that it went quite well.
WORLD: When you think of fashion, the first places that come to mind are Paris, Milan and New York. Is Austria an underestimated fashion nation?
Hiltrop: I think so. There are a lot of great fashion designers there. About Eva Poleschinski and Marina Hoermanseder.
WORLD: Last year, at the peak of the pandemic, you said you had finally found peace and found yourself. Instead of being away 300 days, you were home 300 days. Now business seems to be going again. Just a few weeks ago you were at the Cannes Film Festival. Have you gotten used to the red carpets again?
Hiltrop: Yes. Everything is back to normal. As if nothing had ever happened. That’s strange too.
WORLD: Do you sometimes mourn the silence?
Hiltrop: Let’s put it this way: Being constantly energized, this day-to-day thinking is definitely part of everyday life again. I had a long shoot right before the ceremony, my hotel room is still full of clothes rails and clothes. I still like it at the moment. However, I find that I do a few things differently than I used to. Before Vienna I should have actually flown to Berlin. Then I asked myself: Why? What’s the point? In the next moment I had canceled the flight. In two weeks I was supposed to go first to Berlin, then to Milan, then to Munich. All within three days. In the past I would have followed through with the program, now I don’t do it anymore. Lately I’ve got a kind of automatic brake inside me.
WORLD: Could it also have something to do with the fact that you are getting older?
Hiltrop: Yes, I’m 28 now. An old, wise woman. (She laughs.)
WORLD: Flying a lot and sustainability don’t really go together well, do they?
Hiltrop: Not at all. So I reduce it as much as possible. And have to live with the contradiction.
WORLD: The classic images of masculinity and femininity have never been more controversial than they are today. Is that reflected in the modeling industry?
Hiltrop: Yes, totally. The topic of diversity comes up at every opportunity. It’s not always authentic. A lot of castings are diverse because people think they have to do it that way to appear progressive and tolerant.
WORLD: There were simpler times for young white women with long blonde hair, right?
Hiltrop: It was definitely easier in the past. However, no one should really be discriminated against or excluded. Just because you’re a blonde model doesn’t mean you’re boring.
WORLD: Your career has been marked by resistance and conflicts: you were anorexic as a teenager and, as you once said, you were bullied at school because of your thinness. Does being named Model of the Year give you satisfaction?
Hiltrop: Definitely. I referred to this in my speech and said that it is worth continuing, even if you are disoriented, discouraged, and desperate. You can’t stop chasing your dreams.
WORLD: What do you do the day after you become model of the year?
Hiltrop: First of all, have a relaxed breakfast. For at least an hour. And then – well: I made the return flight extra late because I finally want to visit the Sissi Museum. I’m a huge Sissi fan. I watch the films every year when they come out around Christmas time. I used to watch it with my mom and grandma. I love the films, I can voice many of the scenes. Everything about it fascinates me – the fashion, the whole era.
WORLD: Then an award ceremony in Vienna fits perfectly.
Hiltrop: Yes. (She laughs.) A round thing. However, I got two appointments for today at short notice. I hope that works with Sissi!
Anna Hiltrop was born in Oberhausen in 1994. She has been a model since she was twelve, when a model scout discovered her on Düsseldorf’s Königsallee. She passed her Abitur with a grade of 1.4 and later studied “Fashion, Luxury
