Fendi Resort 2012 Campaign: Natasha Poly
Model: Natasha Poly
Photographer: Karl Lagerfeld
Model: Natasha Poly
Photographer: Karl Lagerfeld
Discovered in Denmark by a model booker going past in a cab, Freja's gamine looks have seen her dominate the ctawalks and campaigns of the last few years including Gucci, Calvin Klein, Balenciaga, Chloe and Cavalli. She has 16 tattoos and is openly bisexual. Agent James Scully says of Freja "The queen of cool. Probably one of the most-requested models of all my clients. She is the perfect old-school clothes-hanger with a little eighties androgyny thrown in" Carine Roitfeld styled this funky shoot of Freja Beha Erichsen in her 5th Chanel Fall 2011 campaign - shot by Karl Lagerfeld, bien sûr! Shot in a photo-booth, I love it! (See more on Carine HERE)

Dane Freja also appears in Lagerfeld's Remember Now - Party at St Tropez short film as a Mick Jagger clone.
I recently came across this fantastic editorial shot in the iconic Hotel Chelsea, New York by Steven Meisel. It features his muse, supermodel Kristen McMenamy.



Kristen McMenamy was one of the waif-like, uncoventional beauties who became huge back in the 90's. With her distinctive, non conformist good looks, Kristen, Stella Tennant and Karen Elson were the androgynous, angular, gazelle-like creatures at odds with their Amazonian counterparts Linda Evangelista, Naomi Campbell, Christy Turlington and Cindy Crawford. Model Maven and Ford Models founder Eileen Ford told her that she would need major plastic surgery if she were ever going to succeed as a model. Thankfully, Kristen ignored this advice and was determined to prove her wrong. Her motivation, tenacity and striking looks propelled her into the realm of Haute Couture, Avant Garde model. "Since I couldn't conform and look like the girl next door, I decided to go the opposite way and be a weirdo. Jobs happened right away." People Magazine, April 19, 1993. Kristen appeared in the famous 'Grunge and Glory' shoot in 1992 with Naomi Campbell and Nadja Auermann, and the following year she shaved off her eye-brows to further entrench her other-worldly, standout look.
'Grunge and Glory' shot by Steven Meisel, American Vogue 1992
In July 2009, Steven Miesel shot Kristen for a Vogue Italia issue entitled "The Legend," dedicated entirely to her. Now married to photographer Miles Aldridge, 46 year old mother of 3 Kristen with her long grey locks is more in demand than ever, rocking a bikini on the cover of Vogue, collaborating with Steven Meisel on several recent editorials and closing the Spring Summer 2011 Chanel show as the bride (an in-joke - Karl walked Kristen down the aisle at her wedding wedding to Miles 13 years ago). "The only reason I hope I'm the new definition of beauty is because I represent the individual. I represent being happy with who you are"
Die Neue Diva, by Max Vadukul for German Vogue 1995
Kristen and Linda Evangelista by Arthur Elgort

Nadja Auermann and Kristen by Richard Avedon, Versace Campaign 1995
Helmut Newton Absolut Vodka ad, 1995





Mert and Marcus for LOVE mgazine

Mert and Marcus, POP magazine 2005
By Solve Sundsbo
Photographed by David Sims & styled by Carine Roitfeld for Vogue Paris, 2007
Wigging out in American Vogue for David Sims, & styled by Grace Coddington 2010
Harper's Bazaar, October 2010


Karen clones in Red Alert in Vogue Italia by Steven Meisel, 2004
From the Evening Standard

Karen for Tom Ford by Steven Meisel 

"Stella's career was catapulted into orbit as a direct result of meeting Meisel, who immediately went on to use her on the cover of Italian Vogue. Soon after, Karl Lagerfeld announced Stella as the new face of Chanel, with a rumoured £1 million contract." Daily Mail, 2010.
Kristen, Linda and Stella, Vogue Italia 1993


I-D Mag covers 1994, 1995, 2001 and 2009
Vogue Italia 1995, 'Red & Red' by Walter Chin
Stella by David Sims for V Magazine, 2010

By Paolo Roversi for Vogue Italia, March 2010
These gorgeous, strong and confident women are still fashion powerhouses despite initially being shunned for looking different. They have produced some of the most iconic, beautiful and stunning fashion photographs the world has ever seen. They are fashion chameleons who can effortlessly change their look from from geek to chic, gawky to gorgeous. Even now 20 years later, these veterans can still command the attention of the top fashion photographers and editors worldwide. They shook up the generic sterotype of a classic cookie-cutter beauty and paved the way for girls (and boys) who looked different - other-worldly, too thin, too big, too weird, too androgynous. Look at Andrej Pejic, Lady Gaga, Lea T, Devon Aoki, Gemma Ward, Isabella Blow, Sophie Dahl, Jenny Shimizu, Eleonoroa Bose, Jemma Kid, Crystal Renn, Marcel Castenmiller, An Oost. As a good friend of mine says - "Embrace the strange".