Few photographs remain as indelible as Peter Lindbergh’s 1990 image of the original supers—Naomi, Linda, Christy, Cindy, and Tatjana, no last names needed—all in jeans and drapey black tops, with almost-bare faces and hair flowing in the wind. It captured the women that defined a decade, and showed them as themselves, rather than as the chameleons they were known to be. Now, 33 years later, they’ve reunited to front Vogue’s September issue, seen through the lens of the young Rafael Pavarotti. (Tatjana Patitz sadly passed away earlier this year.)
“My reaction when I was asked to be part of this September photoshoot was, ‘is this really happening?’” says Naomi about the idea of reuniting with the women who have seen her—and whom she has seen—grow. “We get there and we’ve forgotten we’re there to work.” The supers posed in a variety of configurations, by themselves, and with each other, wearing handsome suits, elegant evening gowns, and of course, jeans and tank tops. Though the latter is a playful nod at the stripped-back images that brought them legendary status all those years ago, it’s not meant to be a re-boot.
“The inspiration for the shoot was to show the girls as they are now in their lives,” explains British Vogue editor-in-chief Edward Enninful. “We are not recreating images from the 1990s, they’re not supposed to be who they were when they were 21, it’s who they are now and we wanted to show it through the lens of joy.” In their teens and twenties they were emblematic of an era, but now in their 50s, their continued visibility stands for something else. “We’re women—we were women then but we were young women then,” exclaims Christy. “Now we’re fully women in our power, in our bodies, not going anywhere, and maybe we’ll be back in 30 or 40 years again.” We should all be so lucky. Watch the making of the September cover below.
Director: Posy Dixon
Editor: Evan Allan
Director of Photography: Mike Lopez
Associate Director, Creative Development: Alex Gurvitch
Senior Producer, Vogue: Jordin Rocchi
Producers: Greg T. Gordon, Maya Tanaka
Set Designer: Taylor Horne
Cam Op: Andrew Maso
1st AC: Jack Kelly
2nd AC: Dan Lando
Set Designer Assistant: Alexandra Kaucher
Gaffer: Julia Gowesky
Grip: John Guilen
Audio: Javier Caso
Associate Producer: Lea Donenberg
Naomi Campbell, Cindy Crawford, Linda Evangelista, and Christy Turlington wear a selection of fashion from Bottega Veneta, Dior Givenchy, Loewe, Pomellato, Proenza Schouler, Sergio Rossi, Tory Burch, and Versace.
Stylist: Edward Enninful
Hairstylist: Eugene Souleiman
Makeup Artist: Stéphane Marais
Makeup Artist for Naomi Campbell: Adam Fleischhauer
Manicurist: Megumi
Manicurist for Naomi Campbell: Candice Idehen
Tailor: Lars Nordensten
Production Coordinator: Ava Kashar
Production Manager: Kit Fogarty
Line Producer: Romeeka Powell
Senior Director, Production Management: Jessica Schier
Assistant Editor: Andy Morell
Post Production Coordinator: Jovan James
Colorist: Oliver Eid
Supervising Editor: Kameron Key
Post Production Supervisor: Edward Taylor
Entertainment Director, Vogue: Sergio Kletnoy
Director of Content, Production: Rahel Gebreyes
Senior Director, Programming: Linda Gittleson
Executive Producer: Ruhiya Nuruddin
VP, Digital Video English: Thespena Guatieri
