He is the face behind some of the standout campaigns of recent seasons, including the Banana Republic campaign shot by Michael Thompson, Louis Vuitton, which was shot by Mert Alas & Marcus Piggot, and Chanel's Allure for Men, shot by Patrick Demarchelier. Since then he has also fronted campaigns for L'Oreal, Brioni and Exte.

In additition to being featured in The Face, he has been photographed by Karl Lagerfeld for Numero, by Inez van Lamsweerde & Vinoodh Matadin for French Vogue and VMan, by Matthias Vriens for Japanese Vogue, Walter Chin for GQ and Solve Sundsbo for VMan. To that stellar list, add Stephen Meisel, Matt Albioni, Francois Nars, Francois Rousseau, Hiro, Greg Kadel and Laurie Bartley among other photographers.

His name is Andrés Velencoso Segura. He is a 26 year-old Pisces from Tossa de Mar — a small, gleaming-white Mediterranean village on the Costa Brava of Spain, some ninety miles from Barcelona. He was born in 1978, just after the demise of Franco's military dictatorship and at a time of extraordinary hope and renewal in Spain.

We sat down to talk with Andrés about his life and career at our offices this past spring. He is intelligent in a quiet, confident and refined way. He was a superb athlete in his early twenties and readily admits he's nearly obsessed with soccer. He also has a wonderful ease about him, a kind of economy that makes no effort to impress — not attitude, far from it. He just genuinely seems more interested in communicating on a real level. And I found a courtliness in him too, a touch of elegance that seems fitting for a boy who grew up dreaming dreams in a castle in Spain...

Sean: Your home town sounds quite beautiful, Andrés.

Andrés: Yes, it really is beautiful, a little town with old medieval forts right on the Mediterranean. In the summer it grows to about 20,000 or 30,000 people but usually there are only about 4000.

Do you know anything about your roots? Is there any Andalusian blood in your veins or some other regional ancestry?

Andalusian, yes. My father is from the center of the country near Madrid, but my mother is from Andalucia.

What defines the Andalusian people?

It is said that above all Spaniards they truly know how to enjoy life, and that family roots are very important.

How many in your own family?

My mother died two years ago, so now we are five — my father, myself and two sisters. I'm the oldest child.

The tattoo above Andrés' heart, "Lucia", is dedicated to his mother's memory.

What was life like growing up for you. What was school like?

Well, it was typical for a little boy in a little town. My father has a restaurant in a castle, an old castle from the fourteenth century. It's quite amazing and jammed in the summers. As children we went to school in the winter and helped at the restaurant during the summers. I know what it is to work hard and how difficult it is to make money. So I can truly say I'm happy right now, when earning money is a lot easier for a change.

You know the difference ...

Exactly.