Before the stars of the latest H&M campaign, there were the original Supermodels, cover girls of the early 90s who started the whole glamourous phenomenon. Naomi Campbell, Christy Turlington, Linda Evangelista, Cindy Crawford and Tatjana Patitz became household names thanks to their great hair, superhuman bodies and a bubble of glamour that seemed to follow wherever they went.



 Following a cover of British Vogue in 1990 shot by Peter Lindbergh featuring the cream of the crop, supermodels became in-demand stars, appearing in the hottest fashion shows or music videos like George Michael’s Freedom. What made the clique so unique was their charismatic energy and their larger-than-life personas – not to mention the constant snaps of the gang having fun together that proved the girls were more than just beautiful mannequins. The Supers weren’t all cookie-cutter replicas, either: Linda’s ever-changing hairstyles provided the inspiration for legions of women going to the hairdressers, while Naomi was everyone’s favourite party girl, often snapped with her famous friends. Cindy was America’s sweetheart, epitomising the girl-next-door charm in her iconic ads for Pepsi, and Christy’s grace and elegance made her Calvin Klein’s go-to girl for almost 20 years.

And these girls barely needed surnames. For them, greatness was measured in magazine covers with their names in bold, helping to promote the girls’ full personalities and make them into icons along the lines of actresses and pop singers. And their different styles and looks meant the Supers were never in danger of treading on each other’s toes too much. Together they created the iconic glamour of an age – beautiful, happy, sophisticated women with strong, healthy bodies modelling the most desirable clothes of the season. They set the template for the supermodels of today, and no wonder the Supers were so in demand. Who wouldn’t want to look – and live – like such fabulous, strong women?

Source: H&M