Maria Tsouka, a fourth-year medical student at the Medical School of Patras, has become the new face of Loewe in Greece after appearing in the Spanish fashion house's campaign in Mykonos last month.
Tsouka is a graduate of the Arsakeio school. Four years ago she achieved top marks in Greece's Panhellenic exams, securing a place at the Medical School of Patras, a decision she said came from her passion for medicine and her wish to help others. Her father is a cardiologist, which she suggested may also have influenced her choice. She said her school was her refuge, where she made friends who shared her dreams and moments of laughter she will always carry with her, adding that her teachers' dedication helped her succeed in the exams and that she owes them a great deal.
Balancing medicine and modeling
Alongside her medical studies, Tsouka works as an influencer and model. She described her life as a constant search for balance, saying medicine is her calling but that fashion and creativity are also part of who she is. She said no one was surprised she chose to study medicine, since she had talked about it since she was five years old, when she used to go to her father's medical office wearing a small white dress that looked like a doctor's coat and pretend to examine patients. She has not yet decided on a specialty but said she feels drawn to plastic surgery, both because every operation is a challenge for a doctor and because she believes the specialty suits women, who she said help people improve their appearance and become more attractive.
The Loewe campaign in Mykonos
One of the most significant moments of her modeling career came a month ago, when she took part in Loewe's campaign in Mykonos, becoming the face of the Spanish house, which is owned by the LVMH group, for Greece. She called it a unique experience, saying working with such an iconic house gave her the chance to express her creativity through fashion, which she loves. The campaign also let her explore the house's new collection. She said every woman is interested in a nice bag or an impressive pair of shoes, adding that she follows trends without strictly adhering to them, preferring pieces that match her image and suit her style.
Views on artificial intelligence
Asked about artificial intelligence, Tsouka said it must be used carefully, warning that excessive use can kill human creativity and that it is important to preserve people's relationship with art and personal expression. She said the current era hides many dangers, arguing that people of her generation have replaced human contact with the internet and creativity with artificial intelligence. Real life, she said, is not found only on TikTok, whose longevity she questioned. Poetry, music and painting, she added, cannot be the product of a machine, because human emotion cannot be replaced and human creation accepts no substitutes. She said history teaches that societies evolved through literature, music, painting and the arts that people themselves were inspired to create.
Living in the moment
Tsouka said she draws inspiration from a line attributed to Oscar Wilde: that people are taught to count minutes, hours, days and years, but no one explains the value of the moment. She said this idea encourages her to live in the present and appreciate life's small but important moments. She described her days as full, with lectures and clinical practice in the morning and social media and music in the evening. She also takes guitar lessons, which she said she enjoys and finds relaxing. Campaigns for brands including Calvin Klein and Loewe fit somewhere in between.
Plans to study kidney transplants in Miami
Tsouka said she often travels and shares images on social media with peers who do not have the chance to see different places, saying travel broadens horizons in what she called an era of global vision. This summer she plans to combine a holiday with what she called a unique opportunity: traveling to the United States to attend kidney transplant seminars at a hospital in Miami. Her mother now lives there permanently, she said, and she plans to visit her while further expanding her medical knowledge, adding that anything learned is a gain. While there, she also plans to shoot some fashion editorials with the Atlantic Ocean as a backdrop.
