Born in Santiago, California, Stephanie Seymour participated in the Elite Model Look World final in 1983, in Acapulco, where she finished in the top 12 finalists. Herb Ritts photographed her for her first American Vogue cover in March 1988, and later that year for the cover of British Vogue. This cover, on which she wore a white, off-the shoulder dress helped Stephanie on her way to Super Model status.
In 1991 she became the face of couture house Christian Dior. She was also featured in Peter Lindbergh’s documentary Models: The Film alongside fellow super models Cindy Crawford, Naomi Campbell and Tatjana Patitz, all of whom were also signed to Elite.
That year she experienced her first taste of acting, when she appeared in the Guns n Roses music video clips for ‘Don’t’ Cry’ and, a year later, ‘November Rain’ alongside her then love interest Axl Rose. In 1992 she was also signed to Victoria’s Secret, and her womanly curves and vivacious demeanour helped launch the company into the internationally known brand it is today.
In the mid-90’s Stephanie was ubiquitous. She was appeared on the cover of Vogue, working again with Herb Ritts, and was the face of advertising campaigns for luxury brands such as Chanel, Versace, Yves Saint Laurence and Ralph Lauren. In other media she was cast in a 50’s-style television commercial for Diet Coke; she also voiced and appeared as a digitized character in an animated video game backed by Hollywood, co-starring with actor Dennis Hopper and the iconic Grace Jones in Hell: A Cyberpunk Thriller.
In the late 1990’s she released her own book, Beauty Secrets for Dummies; was the face of a Louis Vuitton campaign; and appeared on the covers of Vogue and W.
Stephanie’s career continued into the next decade. The 2000’s saw her featured in an artistic fashion monograph More that she produced in collaboration with photographer Juergen Teller. She was appointed the face of an advertising campaign for the hip fashion brand Marc Jacobs. (An instance of cult merchandising occurred when Marc Jacob’s released a skateboard with a Juergen Teller image of Stephanie on the deck.) She also played a more serious acting role, appearing as the American painter, Helen Frankenthaler, in the Oscar-nominated film Pollock starring Ed Harris. In 2002 she had a guest role in the American TV series Law & Order.
In recent years Stephanie’s career has continued across numerous fronts: she was a contributing fashion editor to Interview Magazine; she returned to the catwalk for Hermès Spring 2009 show in Paris; and was named the face of Valentino for the second time – the first was back in 1992. In September 2011 she appeared styled as Elizabeth Taylor in Carine’s Roitfeld’s 72-page spread tribute, shot by Mario Testino, for V Magazine.
