Iman Has Always Been a Trailblazer—Even Before She Knew It
glamour.comin the span of three years. It sounds like the plot of a fictitious fashion fairytale, but for the Somali-born model turned cosmetics mogul—known simply as Iman—the trajectory was very much real. “That was my destiny,” she says, her voice filled with palpable warmth and nostalgia.Iman’s ascent to the upper echelons of fashion as well as her subsequent efforts to champion Black models are among the stories highlighted in the newly released six-part YouTube series, .
Both Iman and Marcellas Reynolds—the latter of whom wrote the book the series is based on—are executive producers. “Iman occupied this space that sort of rose above not just other Black models, but rose above white models,” Reynolds says in episode two.
The sentiment is shared by others in the series, with British Vogue editor-in-chief Edward Enninful noting Iman’s “majestic” appeal and longtime casting director James Scully describing her as “a zenith” on the runway.Iman at the 2021 Met Gala in New York City.Since launching her modeling career in 1975, Iman has built one of industry’s most prolific portfolios.
She’s appeared on five covers and been photographed by greats like Irving Penn, Herb Ritts, and Richard Avedon; both Yves Saint Laurent and Gianni Versace tapped her as a muse; her runway appearances include walks for Halston, Givenchy, and Chanel; and when she retired from from modeling in 1989, she went on to launch the wildly successful Iman Cosmetics.
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