Profile of Kate Moss a Fashion and Modeling Icon

Kate Moss carved out a place in the modeling profession with her diminutive stature and size zero body, which contrasted sharply with many of the voluptuous supermodels of the period. She promoted the idea of delicate beauty as well as the “waif” style. She is among the most well-known faces in the fashion industry, having graced the covers of over 300 publications.

She has also teamed up with many of the industry’s most well-known designers, fashion labels, and photographers, including Dolce & Gabbana, Bulgari, Gucci, Chanel, Calvin Klein, and Rimmel. She became one of the leading fashion models worldwide after successfully putting herself at the frontlines of the fashion scene.

However, Moss did not confine herself to the runway and launched her clothing brand, which has widened and diversified her horizons. She has also been in a couple of music videos and albums. She is a very private lady who does not appear on television or does interviews very often.

Beginnings and “Heroin Chic”

 

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Moss was discovered as a model in 1988, at the age of 14, at JFK Airport in New York, by Sarah Doukas, the founder of Storm Management, during a vacation in the Bahamas. When she was 16, Corinne Day shot black-and-white images of herself for The Face, styled by Melanie Ward, in a shoot called “The 3rd Summer of Love.” Moss was shown as a young unknown, and the images were called “grunge” or “dirty realism.”

Moss was later featured in the highly successful Levi’s commercial “Levi’s for Girls,” created by The Design Corporation and shot by Corinne Day. Moss became the “anti-supermodel” of the 1990s, in contrast to the models of the time, such as Cindy Crawford, Claudia Schiffer, Elle Macpherson, and Naomi Campbell, who were recognized for their tall and curvy forms.

With a commercial for Calvin Klein in 1996, Moss was featured in the fashion style heroin chic (which provoked speculation about her weight). Bill Clinton, the US president at the time, spoke against the trend.

Modeling and Fashion

 

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Moss has modeled for Chanel, Balmain, Louis Vuitton, Versace, Burberry, Balenciaga, Stuart Weitzman, Alexander Wang, Rag & Bone, David Yurman, Roberto Cavalli, Givenchy, Kerastase, Yves Saint Laurent, Isabel Marant, Dior, Dolce & Gabbana, Gucci, Rimmel, Calvin Klein, Equipment, Alexander McQueen, and Bulgari, among others.

She has appeared on the covers and in fashion spreads for most magazines, including Vanity Fair, Another Man, the Face, Harper’s Bazaar, and W. She has appeared on the covers and in fashion spreads for most magazines, including the US, UK, and French Vogue (and other international editions of Vogue), Vanity Fair, Another Man, the Face, Harper’s Bazaar, and W. She’s appeared on the cover of British Vogue 30 times, and she and Amber Valletta shot the first covers of both Japanese and Russian Vogue, along with many other international Vogue covers.

 

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Moss has appeared on the cover of 17 editions of W, including one that featured her on nine separate covers. Moss was chosen as W’s inspiration (September 2003 issue). Moss has also appeared on the first covers of Numéro Tokyo, Numéro, and L’Officiel in Spain.

She has collaborated with photographers like Mario Testino, Steven Klein, Mario Sorrenti, Steven Meisel, Juergen Teller, and Peter Lindbergh, and in July 2005, she received the Vogue/CFDA award for Fashion Inspiration from the Fashion Designers of America. In April 2005, a Rimmel London mascara TV commercial debuted, showcasing Moss riding a motorcycle across London while listening to Steven Crayn’s rock song “Another Cold Beer.”

 

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Moss signed 18 contracts for autumn-winter 2006, including Calvin Klein, Rimmel, Virgin Mobile, Agent Provocateur, and Burberry, just a year after her drug scandal. Moss then collaborated with Katy England on a Topshop line. 

In 2007, Moss partnered with Coty to produce a body lotion and scent line bearing her name. Moss was named Model of the year, the highest honor in British fashion, at the 2006 British Fashion Awards in November, but the title sparked new controversy.

Topshop’s 225 UK locations began selling Moss-designed clothing on 1 May 2007. Moss unveiled the apparel on 30 April, momentarily appearing in the window sporting a red dress from the collection shortly before the shop opened, with a “countdown to launch” board filling a window of the brand’s Oxford Street store. Topshop reportedly paid Moss £3 million.

The 50 designs included clothes, shoes, bags, and belts. Clothes included one-shoulder mini dresses, skinny jeans, and T-shirts with K woven into the design. Moss has also produced four fragrances in partnership with Coty.

 

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She began designing handbags for Longchamp in early 2010 and modeled for Supreme’s spring-summer collection in 2012. Moss has been a Mango model since 2011 but was replaced by Miranda Kerr, an Australian model, in November 2012 for the spring/summer 2013 season.

Moss recommended that Stella McCartney book Dutch illusionist Hans Klok for London Fashion Week the next month after seeing him on the BBC’s The One Show in January 2012. Moss, a magician’s enthusiast, was assigned to be Klok’s helper, and she practiced three illusions: a sawing in half, levitation, and guillotine illusion. Alexa Chung took her position after she left out because of temporary paralysis of her right arm caused by a trapped nerve.

Moss also participated in the video for George Michael’s White Light in 2012, inspired by his illness. On 12 August 2012, Moss performed with Naomi Campbell at the 2012 London Olympic Games closing ceremony.

In December 2013, Moss posed naked for Playboy’s 60th-anniversary issue. In the same month, she was honored with a Special Recognition accolade at the British Fashion Awards for her commitment to the industry throughout her 25-year career.

In February, Moss accepted David Bowie’s Brit Award for Best British Male at the 2014 Brit Awards, wearing a one-piece patterned “woodland creatures” costume similar to Bowie’s. Moss’s second Topshop collection was unveiled on 30 April 2014. Her debut collection with Topshop led to a long-term partnership with the retailer.

Achievements and Awards

She won the “Fashion Personality of the Year” award in 1995. In 2005, she was given the Fashion Icon award by the Council of Fashion Designers of America. Moss took home the prestigious Model of the Year title at the renowned British Fashion Awards in 2006 and received the NME Award for Sexiest Woman in 2007. She has also been named to many magazines “Sexiest Woman Lists.”

If you want to know more about these fashion icons, check out the profiles of Victoria Beckham and Heidi Klum.