Naomi Campbell

Defining work

Born in London in 1970, Campbell trained in dance and performance before modeling. Early music-video appearances help contextualize the bodily discipline of her later runway work.

The 1990 group cover and Freedom! ’90 video coincided with close designer collaborations. Her distinctive walk became a central part of the supermodel era’s live imagery. Magazine pages, music video and runway appearances repeated and reinforced one another. Cooperation among the models mattered alongside individual competition in creating their collective fame.