A star of the supermodel era

With a deep natural beauty and piercing eyes, Tatjana Patitz developed a glittering career among fashion's upper echelons

- LINDA WATSON

A perfect physical embodiment of the phrase "natural beauty", German-born model Tatjana Patitz came to international prominence in January 1990 when, together with Naomi Campbell, Linda Evangelista, Christy Turlington and Cindy Crawford, she appeared on the front cover of British Vogue.

The seminal black and white portrait, shot by photographer Peter Lindbergh on a hot day in the Meatpacking District of Manhattan, was what industry insiders would consider a real "fashion moment". With hindsight, it is recognised as the moment the supermodels were born. With their understated make-up created by Stéphane Marais and chic hair courtesy of Christiaan, it was Sarajane Hoare, then fashion editor of British Vogue, who decided what they should wear.

"I'll organise the clothes," Hoare told her colleagues, recalling the crucial meeting in the Daily Mail. "I didn't sleep for two nights. But it was a big success." The five women featured, who came to define the supermodel era, were dressed relatively simply in translucent stretch bodysuits by Giorgio di Sant' Angelo and in stonewashed Levi jeans, barely visible in the final cut.

The cover, commissioned by the late Elizabeth (Liz) Tilberis, then editor in chief of British Vogue, is today regarded as one of the landmark fashion photographs, not simply of the Nineties but of the entire 20th century. Such was the impact of the image that it catapulted Patitz and her contemporaries to global fame.