Top male model Tom Nicon has died after falling four floors from an apartment block just hours before the start of Milan Men's Fashion Week.
Tom Nicon worked for a number of designers including Burberry
The French catwalk star, who was the face of British label Burberry, had just returned from a Versace rehearsal before he was found dead.
The 22-year-old is thought to have been depressed after breaking up with his girlfriend and was staying with friends in the Italian fashion capital.
He died instantly after falling 40ft from the window.
Police in Milan said they were treating the death as suicide and investigating suggestions he had suffered from a ''complicated affair of love''.
Organisers said Fashion Week would go ahead as planned and designers paid tribute to Tom, with Donatella Versace saying: "He was with us on Friday morning for a final fitting.
"He seemed fine and calm. He had already done three or four shows with us and he was a sweet boy.
"When we heard the news we were all so upset and we still are all so very sad."
The modelling industry has been hit by a series of shocks in recent months.
Alexander McQueen killed himself after his mother's death
Marks and Spencer model Noemie Lenoir took a cocktail of alcohol and drugs to try kill herself in Paris in May - she has now made a full recovery.
In April US model Ambrose Olsen, 24, was found dead in his New York home.
In November South Korean model Daul Kim, 20, hanged herself in her Paris apartment.
Following the news of Nicon's death, an anonymous posting by a fellow model on the fashion website Issac Likes said: "People think we are young and beautiful and rich and happy. But we're not.
"We go to castings and the directors take one look at us and then we're dismissed.
Alexander McQueen killed himself after his mother's death
"You spend your whole life wondering what's wrong with you. Why didn't I get that job?
"You're competing with your friends, you're away from your family. The pressure is huge. It's not the fairytale life people would expect."
Meanwhile, Milan Men's Fashion Week has hosted the Alexander McQueen fashion house's first collection since the designer's suicide in London in February.
The 40-year-old is believed to have become depressed following the death of his mother Joyce, who died on February 2.
Tom Nicon worked for a number of designers including Burberry
The French catwalk star, who was the face of British label Burberry, had just returned from a Versace rehearsal before he was found dead.
The 22-year-old is thought to have been depressed after breaking up with his girlfriend and was staying with friends in the Italian fashion capital.
He died instantly after falling 40ft from the window.
Police in Milan said they were treating the death as suicide and investigating suggestions he had suffered from a ''complicated affair of love''.
Organisers said Fashion Week would go ahead as planned and designers paid tribute to Tom, with Donatella Versace saying: "He was with us on Friday morning for a final fitting.
"He seemed fine and calm. He had already done three or four shows with us and he was a sweet boy.
"When we heard the news we were all so upset and we still are all so very sad."
The modelling industry has been hit by a series of shocks in recent months.
Alexander McQueen killed himself after his mother's death
Marks and Spencer model Noemie Lenoir took a cocktail of alcohol and drugs to try kill herself in Paris in May - she has now made a full recovery.
In April US model Ambrose Olsen, 24, was found dead in his New York home.
In November South Korean model Daul Kim, 20, hanged herself in her Paris apartment.
Following the news of Nicon's death, an anonymous posting by a fellow model on the fashion website Issac Likes said: "People think we are young and beautiful and rich and happy. But we're not.
"We go to castings and the directors take one look at us and then we're dismissed.
Alexander McQueen killed himself after his mother's death
"You spend your whole life wondering what's wrong with you. Why didn't I get that job?
"You're competing with your friends, you're away from your family. The pressure is huge. It's not the fairytale life people would expect."
Meanwhile, Milan Men's Fashion Week has hosted the Alexander McQueen fashion house's first collection since the designer's suicide in London in February.
The 40-year-old is believed to have become depressed following the death of his mother Joyce, who died on February 2.