John Kortajarena was Born in Bilbao, Biscay, Basque Country, Spain.  He was discovered during a vacation in Barcelona in 2003 when a booker noticed him.  At just 18 years old, he became the face of Just Cavalli, Roberto Cavalli’s spring campaign.  From there his career took off, and he made his international fashion show debut during fall Milan and Paris fashion weeks.  Just two months later, he was photographed for Versace by Steven Meisel.  He has also walked runways for Dolce & Gabbana, Salvatore Ferragamo, Bottega Veneta, and Chanel.  He was also the face of David Yurman for their fall campaigns as photographed by Peter Lindbergh. Most notably, he has appeared in advertising campaigns for H&M, Zara, Guess, and Tom Ford.  He was ranked by Forbes as number 8 in The World’s 10 Most Successful Male Models in June 2009.  More recently, he has moved towards the acting world, noting that if he were not a model he would likely be a full time actor.