I love glossy fashion and style magazines. Harper’s Bazarr, W, Vogue, Elle… Signed, sealed, delivered I’m yours; countless hours have been spent traipsing up and down the magazine aisles of Barnes & Noble carefully peeling back pages (no wrinkles or folds, I despise them in magazines) of fashion “bibles”; eyes scrolling up, down, left and right just to see the names of the alluring models and who did the styling. Yes, my love for clothes will never die, but I’ve also always had a tiny obsession with models and their celestial-like appearance. Don’t look at me like that! I’ve seen Jourdan Dunn, Machiko, Liya Kebede…in person and they are undeniably beautiful.
Stunning, gorgeous, alluring; a slew of beauty idenitfying adjectives come to mind when looking at and/or speaking of models, in fact those same adjectives popped up while I was doing research for this piece. Pat Cleveland, Carol Alt, Jerry Hall, China Machado, Beverly Johnson; all supermodel vets that can be housed in the celestial appearance category. But what happens after the flashing lights and early call times disappear? About Face: Supermodels Then and Now, a Sundance Film Festival jewel gives us insight. It’s now a part of HBO’s extravagant and informative documentary catalog and it airs tonight at 9 pm (EST). About Face reveals the roles supermodels like the ones I listed above along with other legends “played in defining – and redefining – beauty over time” through intimate portrait style interviews. Excited! Watch the trailer below.
That clip has me ready for About Face, pretty sure my inner model will come out invoking me to sashay around my living room. I really wanted to see how Beverly, Marisa, Carol, Pat, Bethann (well all of them) looked during their model reign. I put my fashion and style sleuth skills into Inspector Gadget mode and found some beautiful magazine covers, dating back to the 50s. Check ‘em out below.
Pat Cleveland – 1971
Carmen Dell’Oreficie – 1958
Carol Alt – 1980
China Machado – 1971
Jerry Hall – 1976
Bethann Hardison – 1974
Paulina Porizkova – 1986
Christie Brinkley – 1985
Karen Bjornson – 1981
Cheryl Tiegs – 1977
Lisa Taylor – 1979
Isabella Rossellini – 1989
Maria Berenson – 1970
Beverly Johnson – 1976
So many lovely covers! Everyone was strikingly beautiful. How about that makeup and fashion? Hahaha. The nail polish lover leaped out and noticed the shape of Carmen Dell’Oreficie’s nails (1958). Look familiar? Eyes Rihanna, Beyoncé, Sophy Robson and Lana Del Rey’s nails. Did you notice the $1.50 to $3.00 magazine price tag? Very similar to what a magazine would cost now with a subscription.
“Nowadays, everybody wants their child to model,” she says, adding, “Back in the day, nobody wanted anybody to be a model!” – Bethann Hardison
“Of course it’s no fun getting old and sick and dying. We all know that’s coming and it’s a bore,” she says. “Why shouldn’t we be allowed to age? When I turned 50, I felt a sense of achievement.” – Jerry Hall
I’m pumped about watching About Face: Supermodels Then and Now tonight. To think back then, no one wanted to be a model. Times have really changed! Will you be watching?
xx Sereeda
