The Return of The Supermodels
By Denise Grayson October 9, 2009
Photo: Wikimedia Commons
Janice Dickinson thinks she was the first supermodel. And she can pretty much have the title, for when it comes to that most coveted of beauty + success designations the ones most of us care about are The Supermodels – that extraordinary collective of beauties that dominated fashion in the early 1990s to everyone’s delight. Their catwalk prowess combined with commercial appeal lead them to become household names – entities outside of the industry purely on the power of face recognition and the cache of their elite grouping. They were too much to resist with their sexy hair, pouty lips, lithe bodies and up-to-there legs, but really, who was even trying? To quote a term of endearment made famous by Tom Cruise, the world was “more than enamoured.”
By the time The Supers retired from the runways and went on to do other things, the industry had tired of catering to diva-like demands and paying exorbitant hourly rates. Enter the new wave of girls and once again the model was a mere employee, and if they were lucky, a muse to a photographer or designer. But none drew the same frenzied infatuation as the likes of Cindy, Naomi, Claudia, Christy and Linda, save but a Kate and a Gisele. It was a unique moment in fashion and only time will tell if we’ll ever see the models call the shots again.
However, in the last two years The Supermodels have experienced a revival of sorts, appearing in their late 30s and early to mid 40s in high profile campaigns for the most prestigious of the fashion houses and snapping up those coveted cosmetics contracts.
Here’s what three of our favourite girls have been up to since they left the catwalk:
Cindy Crawford
The most business savvy of The Supers and also the most commercial thanks to her sexy yet All-American girl image which she singlehandedly shifted from the blonde blue-eyed ideal. Cindy never really left the spotlight after she left the runway in 2000, endorsing products such as Pepsi and appearing in her own fitness videos before pursuing an acting career. Her acting as a lead in the film Fair Game was panned by critics and after a few more minor roles she admitted she’s wasn’t particularly talented. She posed for Playboy and was photographed by Herb Ritts who introduced her to his friend Richard Gere, who she married and then divorced four years later. In 1998 she married Rande Gerber with whom she had two children – a boy and girl who each have their mother’s stunning looks. In 2005 Cindy created a line of beauty products with Dr. Jean-Louis Sebagh called Meaningful Beauty for Guthy-Renker. More recently she has delved into the business of housewares and interiors. She began by launching a line of furniture called “The Cindy Crawford Home Collection” which is sold through retailers throughout North America. She also has a furniture line with Raymour & Flanigan and will launch another home goods line with J. C. Penney in late 2009. While she admits to having undergone some cosmetic procedures since her late 20s, she’s managed her looks well and continues to rank highly on the ‘hottest’ lists of many men’s magazines at the age of 43.
Linda Evangelista
The St. Catharines, Ontario native who was called “legendary” by Steven Meisel and the “top of the tops” by Karl Lagerfeld has been the quietest of the bunch since she left the spotlight of the catwalk. While she has received many accolades in recent years such as the VH1 Fashion Awards Lifetime Achievement Award, World Style Icon at the Women’s World Awards and a star on Canada’s Walk of Fame in Toronto, she’s remained relatively low profile, concentrating on her young son and working for AIDS and breast cancer awareness. Then out of the blue, history repeated itself when Prada put her in their fall 2008 campaign and she returned to Vogue Italia and featured on their August 2009 cover, shot by Steven Meisel. She is currently the face of John Galliano, L’Oreal Paris and L’Oreal Paris Studio Secrets Professional.
Claudia Schiffer
The Brigitte Bardot look-alike from Germany has dabbled in acting, having small roles in many films – playing herself half the time – and appearing in several documentaries. She released a series of successful fitness videos, then with fellow models Christy Turlington, Naomi Campbell, and Elle Macpherson, Claudia became joint owner of a chain of restaurants called the Fashion Café in 1995. The venture never really took off despite the hysteria the models stirred up in their publicity tours. In terms of her love life, the model’s long engagement to illusionist David Copperfield was a puzzler to her fans and eventually she settled down with film producer Matthew Vaughan in 2002. The couple have two children and live in London. Claudia has been the face of Mango, a Spanish fashion chain and Accessorize’s Fall 2006 campaign, and she holds contracts with L’Oréal and Ebel watches. Karl Lagerfeld chose her to front a Chanel campaign once again, this time for the spring 2008 ready-to-wear collection. Currently she appears in a commercial for Dolce & Gabbana’s fragrance Anthology where she drops a robe to reveal her backside for a quick second, proving she’s still got it. But don’t expect to see her strut her stuff on the catwalk. As the 39-year-old recently announced, “I’m finished with the runway. I won’t miss it. I am still modelling and I enjoy that a lot – but no more runways.”
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Submitted on October 9, 2009 in Industry News.
Denise is a Canadian living in England who is fascinated by the fusing of fashion and art. Her obsession with the details and an insatiable urge to share beautiful discoveries drives her Paris-loving blog, www.TheSwelleLife.com, and recently she opened Swelle Boutique at www.swelleboutique.com which offers exclusive one-off and limited edition dresses and accessories.
Denise Grayson has contributed 59 articles to Models & Moguls.
