Allegra Versace is the niece of Gianni Versace and the daughter of Donatella. Upon her uncle’s murder she was bequeathed half of the business. Unfortunately the public attention took it’s toll in her, and she began to show signs of having an eating disorder. Photos surfaced of her looking painfully skeletal.

Here is what she had to say about it:
Via Huffington Post

Allegra Versace, daughter of Donatella and niece of the late Gianni, recently sat down with Italy’s La Repubblica to discuss what she’s been up to these days. The 25-year-old, who inherited 50 percent of the Versace fashion empire when she turned 18, has been dabbling in the design world, spending more and more time in the studio.

And what about making a name for herself in fashion, when she already has the last name Versace? Allegra told Natalia Aspesi:

Definitely, I still prefer the anonymity. I’ve spent some time working with a non-Italian designer, I’ve been helping him organize fashion shows, the advertising, also helping with the creative part. But the great part about this work is that I am no one! They pay me, also, of course, for now not enough to live without worries, but I think you can get used to everything, if you feel free, if you are yourself and not what others want you to be, if you don’t see a photographer around every corner, if you do not bury yourself in cruel gossip that does so much harm.

Speaking of, Allegra was constantly the topic of cruel gossip, growing up for some time in the U.S. where she was studying, but also treating her much-talked-about anorexia. She said:

“I call this my period of absence, I was lost in other thoughts and couldn’t confront reality, with my eyes shielded from everything. Above all, I wanted one thing — to be no one, to not be recognized, not be hunted down. I studied theater, and it pleased me greatly to play parts in little independent films that perhaps no one went to see. For example, I really loved ‘Little Miss Sunshine.’ Still, anywhere I went, I was Versace. I couldn’t escape, and it did me harm. I hated Los Angeles. However I did have beautiful moments. For example, when I was in New York, Rupert Everett played in Noel Coward’s ‘Blithe Spirit,’ and I, behind the scenes, acted invisibly as a dresser.”

What I find interesting is that she talks about the “period of absence” it’s as if she wanted to render herself invisible and managed to reduce her body to almost nothing as if she was physically trying to disappear. I feel for her, as she never asked for the attention but inherited it (literally and figurative­ly). I hope that she finds the balance that she is looking for inside and outside- and learns how to manage how the attention makes her feel because unfortunat­ely it isn’t going any where. I respect that she is learning the ropes in the industry even though she really doesn’t have to. It show a respect for the craft!