Pegah Savehshemshaki on Fashion, Identity and Finding a Way Forward
DUCHELLE Magazine · Interview
We had the honor of sitting down with Los Angeles-based model and artist Pegah Savehshemshaki for a conversation about fashion, identity, womanhood and the unexpected paths that can lead us somewhere entirely new.
Born in Tehran, Pegah is three quarters Iranian and one quarter Slavic. She left Iran for Germany with her parents at a young age before eventually making Los Angeles her home. Her journey into modeling was equally unexpected: after working in biology and biotechnology, she found herself drawn toward a creative world where she could explore a different side of herself.
But behind the fashion images is a much deeper story. As a child, Pegah and her family were refugees seeking asylum in Germany. During their journey through Eastern Europe, they found themselves in Sarajevo during the Kosovo War — an experience she remembers vividly to this day.
We spoke with Pegah about the many chapters of her life, from discovering modeling as a form of storytelling to leaving behind a stable career, navigating difficult personal experiences and learning to keep moving forward.
DUCHELLE: To you, what is modeling?
Pegah Savehshemshaki: To me, modeling is a communicative art form that allows you to express yourself in many ways. When I'm modeling, I feel like I'm telling a story.
DUCHELLE: What is something people might be surprised to learn about you?
Pegah Savehshemshaki: I eat a grotesque amount of junk food and hardly ever exercise in the gym. So bad, I know.
DUCHELLE: How should women empower each other?
Pegah Savehshemshaki: Women can empower each other by supporting each other's endeavors and not being so quick to take each other down. Also, women can support each other by exercising empathy as opposed to judgment.
DUCHELLE: Has there been a change of mind that changed your life in a positive direction?
Pegah Savehshemshaki: After discovering that he had been cheating on me on and off for the two-year expanse of our relationship, I recently broke up with my ex-boyfriend.
DUCHELLE: What is the greatest hardship you have conquered in life?
Pegah Savehshemshaki: I survived the Kosovo War in Bosnia during the 90s.
My parents were refugees seeking asylum in Germany, but had to cross certain parts of Eastern Europe to do so. So, at one point, we ended up in Sarajevo, Bosnia.
I was very young, yet I distinctly remember a man next to me getting shot in the face by a sniper bullet. His blood ended up splattering me and I still dream of it.
DUCHELLE: What is the greatest lesson you have learned from conquering hardship — something you would share with someone going through something similar?
Pegah Savehshemshaki: There is always a way forward, even when you are feeling completely hopeless. There is always tomorrow. The Sun will shine again.
I truly endorse the efficacy of the power of positive thinking. Sometimes, all you need is a paradigm shift.
DUCHELLE: You had a background in biology and worked in biotechnology before entering modeling. What made you take that leap?
Pegah Savehshemshaki: As someone with a background in biology who worked in a biotech company until very recently, entering the modeling world was a sort of serendipitous yet unapologetic stumble.
I didn't plan on it, but loved every minute of it. It let me explore my creativity and artistry in a way that biology did not.
It's not every day that people will get up and leave their stable desk jobs to become a model, especially one who is at times donning nothing but glitter!We had the honor of speaking with Los Angeles-based model and artist Pegah Savehshemshaki, whose journey has taken her from Tehran to Germany and, ultimately, Los Angeles.
With an Iranian and Slavic heritage and a background in biology and biotechnology, Pegah's path into modeling was far from conventional. Her story also carries a much heavier history: as a young child, she and her family were refugees seeking asylum in Germany, and during their journey through Eastern Europe, they found themselves in Sarajevo during the Kosovo War.
What began as a conversation about modeling soon became something much more personal. We spoke about the relationship between fashion and self-expression, women's relationships with one another, leaving behind an established career, surviving childhood trauma, and finding the courage to begin again.