'' Donna'' Bianca Brandolini d'Adda dei conti di Valmareno (born 25 June 1987) is an Italian model, actress and

socialite A socialite is a person, typically a woman from a wealthy or aristocratic background, who is prominent in high society. A socialite generally spends a significant amount of time attending various fashionable social gatherings, instead of having ...

Early life and family

Bianca Brandolini d'Adda was born in

Paris, France Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

, to an ancient Venetian

aristocratic Aristocracy (; ) is a form of government that places power in the hands of a small, privileged ruling class, the aristocrats. Across Europe, the aristocracy exercised immense economic, political, and social influence. In Western Christian co ...

family. Her father is Rodrigo Tiberto Brandolini d'Adda, Count of Valmareno and her mother is Princess Georgina Maria Natividad de Faucigny-Lucinge et Coligny, a French-Brazilian model who worked for Valentino as an artistic muse. Through her father, she is a descendant of Empress Maria Theresa. She has an older sister, Coco Brandolini d’Adda. Two of her family's ancestral palaces, the Palazzo Brandolin Rota and the Palazzo Morosini Brandolin, are located on the Grand Canal. Her paternal grandmother was Countess Cristiana Brandolini d'Adda (née Agnelli), sister of

Fiat Fiat Automobiles S.p.A., commonly known as simply Fiat ( , ; ), is an Italian automobile manufacturer. It became a part of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles in 2014 and, in 2021, became a subsidiary of Stellantis through its Italian division, Stellant ...

chairman

Gianni Agnelli Giovanni "Gianni" Agnelli (; 12 March 192124 January 2003), nicknamed ("The Lawyer"), was an Italian industrialist and principal shareholder of Fiat S.p.A., Fiat. As the head of Fiat, he controlled 4.4% of Italy's GDP, 3.1% of its industrial ...

and daughter of

Edoardo Agnelli Edoardo Agnelli (9 June 1954 – 15 November 2000) was the eldest child and only son of Gianni Agnelli, the industrialist patriarch of Fiat S.p.A., and of Marella Agnelli, who was born '' Donna'' Marella Caracciolo di Castagneto. He converte ...

and Virginia Bourbon del Monte (daughter of Carlo Bourbon del Monte, Prince di San Faustino). Her maternal grandfather was the French aristocrat Prince Jean-Louis de Faucigny-Lucinge and her maternal grandmother was Sylvia Régis de Oliveira, the only daughter of Raul Régis de Oliveira, a Brazilian diplomat who served as Brazil’s Ambassador to the United Kingdom from 1925 to 1939. She grew up between Paris, Venice, and

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro, or simply Rio, is the capital of the Rio de Janeiro (state), state of Rio de Janeiro. It is the List of cities in Brazil by population, second-most-populous city in Brazil (after São Paulo) and the Largest cities in the America ...

and received her education at the Institut du Marais–Charlemagne Pollès. She went on to study theatre at Studio Pygmalion in Paris. In 2005, she was presented to society at le Bal des Débutantes at the

Hôtel de Crillon Hôtel de Crillon, A Rosewood Hotel () is a historic luxury hotel in Paris which opened in 1909 in a building dating to 1758. Located at the foot of the Champs-Élysées, the Crillon, along with the Hôtel de la Marine, is one of two identical s ...

in Paris. She was escorted by Antoine de Tavernost and wore a black and white Valentino gown. She was chosen to open the first waltz at the Crillon Ball with

Prince Charles Philippe, Duke of Anjou A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. The fema ...

Career

In 2009, Brandolini d'Adda made her acting debut in the television film ''Aïcha'', directed by

Yamina Benguigui Yamina Benguigui (born Yamina Zora Belaïdi; in Lille on 9 April 1955) is a French film director and politician of Algerian descent. She is known for her films on gender issues in the North African (both Berbers in France, Berbers and Arabs in F ...

. She was a spokes-model for

Dolce & Gabbana Dolce & Gabbana (), also known by initials D&G, is an Italian Luxury goods, luxury fashion house founded in 1985 in Legnano by Italian designers Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana. The house specializes in ready-to-wear, handbags, accessories, ...

, becoming the face of their fashion brand in 2012. She co-designed a line of women's swimwear with Alexia Niedzielski for Oskar Metsavaht's fashion brand Osklen. In 2014, she collaborated with Angelo Ruggeri, director of Sergio Rossi, on a collection of women's shoes.

Personal life

Brandolini d'Adda had been involved romantically with Agnelli heir

Lapo Elkann Lapo Edovard Elkann (born 7 October 1977) is an Italian businessman, philanthropist, and socialite. He is the chairman, founder, and majority shareholder (53.37%) of the Italia Independent Group. He is also the president and founder of and Ind ...

, her second cousin. The couple had at one point been engaged, but later called off the relationship.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Brandolini d'Adda, Bianca Living people 1987 births Agnelli family Brandolini d'Adda family Debutantes of le Bal des débutantes House of Faucigny Nobility from Paris Italian fashion designers Italian women fashion designers Countesses in Italy Italian socialites Italian female models Actresses from Paris Italian women bloggers Royalty and nobility models