Give Me Body! The Supermodels of the Late '80s and Early '90s

Christy Turlington, Veronica Webb, Linda Evangelista, Karen Mulder, Naomi Campbell, Claudia Schiffer, Stephanie Seymour, ... These were the women who graced the fashion runways, fashion magazine covers and even Sports Illustrated's Swimsuit Edition for most of the late 1980s and early to mid 1990s. The fall 2010 ready-to-wear shows saw the return of a few of these fashion icons such as Elle Macpherson, yet models of their physical caliber have been missing for over a decade. Some still try to throw the term supermodel around, however, very few models on the scene now even come close to those icons in the era of Gianni Versace and George Michael's "Freedom".

What Made These Women Supermodels?

Simply being a model does not classify one as a supermodel. The supermodels of the late 80s and early to mid 90s had attributes that set them apart from their predecessors and the ones who came after. Supermodels:

- Appeared in almost every high fashion magazine either on the cover or in at least one high fashion spread.

- They were the face of designer lines such as Helena Christensen for Versace, Linda Evangelista for Chanel, Karen Mulder for Guess Jeans and Christy Turlington for Calvin Klein.

- Appeared frequently in music videos such as Stephanie Seymour in Gun-n-Roses videos and Helena Christen playing a "wicked Game" with Chris Isaacs.

- They also were commercially known such as Cindy Crawford's all-American beauty selling millions of cans of Diet Pepsi.

- They began commanding some of the highest pay for models; most evident by Linda Evangelista's infamous quote from Vogue "we don't get out of bed for less than $10,000 a day." Surely, Giselle Bundchen is thankful for that pioneering spirit since she has been either one of or the highest paid model for most of the last decade.

- Last but certainly not least, these models were beautiful and fit. Not overweight by any standard these women worked out to maintain healthy, toned yet curvy bodies.

These Supermodels Made Fashion Look Good

Supermodels made late 80s and 90s fashion look good. The clothing fit and hung on their curves. Women with curvy figures could see themselves in the designs. These models forced designers to make clothing that fit the female form in all its glory. As fierce as Karly Kloss's walk is down the runway, her slight frame is not equipped to optimally pull off a form-fitting outfit. With the physique the former supermodels had, designs had to be ultra sexy to show them off to their fullest. At the same token celebrities began to show their sexy backs off as well. Actress Elizabeth Hurley was the perfect non-model capable of pulling of a Gianni Versace bondage dress. Madonna had the dimensions to make Gaultier's breast cones (though still odd) sexy.

Where Has the Supermodel Gone?

Technically the supermodel still exists in the likes of Giselle, Heidi Klume, Adriana Lima and Alessandra Ambrosio. There is one place you will see them regularly, Victoria Secret. Unlike the rest of the fashion world, lingerie designers realize that curvy bodies are still popular for lingerie. These models still hit the runway and they stand out from the rest of the models. You will almost always find them in the sexiest designs of a collection where breasts and a good S-curve are needed to make the most impact.

With all of the controversy over the average runway model getting thinner by the season, a resurgence of the supermodel figure may quiet the storm a bit. Even designers would have to admit that a body like Claudia Schiffers looks better in Chanel than most of the models wearing the label for the fall RTW 2010 season. Maybe it's time to bring body back to fashion. The public can handle it. Can the designer's?

Sources:

http://www.styleite.com/media/supermodels-photos/

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/03/27/victorias-secret-supermod_n_515271.html