Why Does the First Lady of a Country at War Need a Stylist?

On Tuesday, dozens of world leaders arrived for the NATO summit in Washington. Among them was Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelensky, whose appeal to the international community for continued aid in his country’s war with Russia was a key topic under discussion. Making a rare appearance with him was his wife, Olena Zelenska, who in 2022 became the rare first lady to address Congress.

At that time, Ms. Zelenska dressed for the moment in a suit carefully calculated to draw attention to the plight of eastern Ukraine, then under heavy Russian attack. This time, surrounded by numerous other NATO spouses, Ms. Zelenska was again dressing with purpose. Or so said Natasha Kamenska, a designer, co-founder of Gunia Project, a Ukrainian brand, and, since mid-2021, stylist to the first lady.

Below, Ms. Kamenska explains how she and Ms. Zelenska have used fashion to create an image of what it means to be first lady of a country under siege and how clothes can affect the perception of the watching world.

This conversation has been condensed and edited.

Why does a first lady in a country at war even need a stylist?

For us, fashion is one more tool to speak about Ukrainians, designers and talent. It’s a light way to speak about much more serious things on big public occasions, when the first lady needs to use every detail to support her cause. During the normal week, she can’t leave her compound. She can’t go shopping. She can’t go from her house to her office. Even if she is on some business trip, it is just airport, hotel, meeting. Otherwise, it’s too dangerous.

And that’s where you come in?

Yes. On this trip we tried to include as many different Ukrainian brands as possible, to show resilience and to show that brands continue to work and develop under shelling and blackouts.