Previous Balenciaga models, Gisele and Jennifer Connelly

In the modelling world there aren’t many other campaigns that can launch a career or cement your status quite like Balenciaga’s. In the past, the Paris-based fashion power house has called upon the mighty fine talents of big time strutters like Gisele, Stella Tennant, Karen Elson, Jamie Bochert and Liya Kebede, as well as sending new-to-the-scene models like Eliza Cummings and Hannah Holman into the spotlight. And let’s not forget some of the legendary ads that featured an elite picking of ultra-cool celebs - Jennifer Connelly and Charlotte Gainsbourg, no less.

Whilst we’re still waiting on all of the visual deets for the Spring / Summer 2012 campaign (you’ll be first to know, of course), what we can tell you is that Balenciaga are going to champion a set of relatively unknown new faces. Four, in fact. Risky? Well, not really. As we said, the dream team at the Big B (being creative director Nicholas Ghesquiere, Mr Steven-living legend-Meisel will be shooting as per and we assume makeup artist extraordinaire Pat Macgrath and stylist Marie Amelie Sauvage will assume their regular roles) will no doubt create a campaign wonderful enough to give these models a fast track into fashiondom. So, just who are they?

1. Out of the four mystery models, Juliane Gruner (a regular on the Balenciaga catwalk) has actually already had a shot at the top campaign spot – featuring in the A/W’11 ads already. She’s since landed a Vogue Italia cover (also shot by Meisel) in June this year. 

2. Netherlands-born Laura Kampman was recently voted in Models.com top ten newcomers, but is yet to land a big cover or campaign aside from Balenciaga – for whom she walked in the A/W’11 and S/S’12 runways.

3. Danish blondie Kirstin Kragh Liljegren is one of Scoop’s top new faces and has already drawn comparisons online to the wonderful Natasha Poly. Not a bad start.

4. But we're most intrigued by Brit girl Rosie Tapner who is only 15 - yes, 15! She’s just been signed to Storm and we’re big fans of her pouty lips. Let's take a look at why she's bagged one of the hottest campaigns on the block...

By Hannah Almassi