Last Updated: January 12, 2023, 14:05 IST
Tatjana Patitz, a supermodel with a piercing gaze who became famous in the 1990s for her love of animals, has passed away.
According to Patitz’s representative Corinne Nicolas, she passed away from breast cancer on Wednesday. She’s survived by her son, Jonah
Tatjana Patitz, one of the original supermodels who dominated the ‘80s and ‘90s with her intense gaze and chich style passed away. The German-born supermodel was 56. A representative from her family has said that Patitz died because of metastatic breast cancer, reported Vogue. At the time of her death, she was living in California, which was her permanent residence. She is survived by her 19-year-old son, Jonah Patitz. The supermodel is perhaps well-known for her appearance in George Michael’s Freedom! ’90 music video in 1990. That was also the decade when Patitz rose to fame and went on to become one of the most prominent supermodels of the 90s.
Born in Hamburg, she moved to Skanör in South Sweden with her family. In 1983, at the age of 17 Tatjana Patitz entered an Elite Model Contest in Stockholm. She placed third in the country. This landed her a trip to Paris and a limited-time contract. Yet Patitz did not find work until a year, that is until she was introduced to German photographer Peter Lindbergh. Often regarded as the fairy godfather of her career, he shot Patitz for the famous snap called White Shirts: Six Supermodels, Malibu in 1988. He also made her feature on the British Vogue supermodel cover in January 1990. This is how Patitz found the opportunity to be featured in George Michael’s Freedom ’90 music video.
Tatjana Patitz was known to be different from the rest of the original supermodels. She was known to have an element of mystery surrounding her. Not only did she look more mature than her fellow supermodels, but she had also made a name for herself in the fashion world with her intense gaze. Even the choice of her residence was starkly different. While most supermodels chose New York or Paris as their home, Patitz chose California as her home. The animal-loving supermodel chose the place to be closer to nature and animals.
In the course of her career, Tatjana Patitz has appeared on more than 130 magazine covers, according to CNN. Some of her most famous appearances were on Vogue’s 100th-anniversary cover in 1992, and in 2016, for Lindbergh’s Italian Vogue cover shot.
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