Filip Hrivnak

Filip Hrivnak is a Slovak model from Košice whose move into fashion followed an injury that ended his ambitions in professional hockey. His spring-summer 2014 Vogue Hommes International cover and first Versace campaign established a photographic identity that became a recurring part of the Italian house’s advertising.

In a 2014 interview with The Fashionisto, Filip recalled that a friend who had modeled sent his pictures to Exit Model Management. The agency called him in, and he signed a contract that day. His first shoot was a studio test with Alex Rymsinova. Hockey had occupied much of his life until a doctor advised him that an injury meant he could no longer play professionally; he continued playing informally with friends.

Photographers Mert & Marcus were central to his early breakthrough. They photographed his Vogue Hommes International cover and reunited with him for Versace’s fall-winter 2014 campaign, for which he went blond. He remembered his booker’s excitement at securing the job, even as he was still absorbing its significance.

The relationship developed over subsequent seasons, with Filip returning for Versace’s fall-winter 2023 campaign, again photographed by Mert & Marcus. Further assignments included the house’s eyewear and spring-summer 2024 watches advertising.

Sport remained an active part of his identity. Speaking to Emefka in 2024, Filip described himself first as a husband and father, and explained that he had returned to hockey as a youth coach. He also recalled how unfamiliar fashion had initially felt after life in a hockey dressing room, including working for brands he had barely known. Coaching gave the sport a renewed role alongside the modeling career that followed it.